Cute Almost Symmetrical Younger Sister Psychotic Version!
by Wolf no naku koro ni
Summary: Kid's little sister, Flander Scarlet, was trapped in a basement for years. Now that they have found her, she lives with Kid. Everyone loves her for her cute innocence. However, as time goes on, she proves to be a little more unstable than she let on. What will it be like with an insane Reaper with a weapon made out of a tortured Death Scythe's soul? Read it, or I'll take your soul!
1. Chapter 1

**I do not own Soul Eater, Touhou Project, or any other series referred to in this fanfiction.**

"In a dark castle I held a tea party by myself, inside a birdcage, why don't you dance with me?"

"We've found her," Professor Franken Stein reported to Lord Death in the Death Room.

"Oh?" Lord Death inquired. "Where is she now?"

"In the dungeon," Stein replied. "We found her chained to the wall in the basement."

Whom they were speaking of was none other than Lord Death's daughter, Flander Scarlet Death. After she was born, Flander was kidnapped by her selfish and insane mother. They have been trying to find her ever since.

"How is she?" Lord Death pressed on.

"She's suffered some mental trauma. For now, she's violent and insane, but she's still, more or less, Flander Death."

"Good," Lord Death said. "Can I see her now?"

"Of course," Stein nodded. "She's your daughter; I'm sure if anything gets out of hand, you can handle it."

"Mirror, mirror… Who is the most mischievous of all? 'That would be you!' Reflects in my laugh. I am you, and you are a nuisance, I wonder who will be my next playmate…."

Flander Scarlet Death; Just Who Is Lord Death's daughter?

"You wanted to see me?" Kid asked as he walked into the Death Room. He paused and looked up, taking in the form of a newcomer. All was silent; the only things with any sense of animation within the room were the floating white clouds that drifted peacefully against the walls.

The little girl was younger than Kid based on her height and size. She had golden eyes and a plain, slightly ripped black and white dress. She was childishly holding a stuffed lion in front of her, which was odd, but the most striking quality of hers was her jet black hair with three stripes on the right side. Despite being so a-symmetrical that it made Kid want to die, she was adorable.

"Who's this?" Kid couldn't help but smile slightly.

"This is your sister, Flander Scarlet Death," Lord Death replied. "She'll be staying with you for a while."

"I have a sister?" Kid dropped his schoolbag in amazement. "Why didn't you ever tell me? Don't say that it never came up!"

"Flander, why don't you introduce yourself?" Lord Death acted as if he didn't hear Kid speak, which only annoyed Kid further.

"Hey, wait a—!"

Flander held up a stuffed lion. "This is Sakutaro," she said softly, grinning slightly.

He looked down at the stuffed toy Flander was introducing him to and smiled half-heartedly. In the corner of his eye, he swore he saw it blink at him. Kid had to mentally restrain himself from hugging her. Although she was a fascination, something about her unsettled him. She looked like a child off the cover of a horror film, which was probably to be expected from a Grim Reaper. She seemed distant and… only one word could come to mind; unstable.

"That's cute," Kid continued smiling, trying to make a good impression on her.

"He's my only friend." she added, stroking the edge of its mane with her fingertip. Her voice was high-pitched and happy.

"I'm sure you'll make lots of friends here," Kid reassured her, taking her hand.

"Take her home and make sure she behaves, I'll see you later," Lord Death said quickly, waving.

"A new member?" Maka asked as Dr. Stein was explaining the situation with Flander to them.

"Yes, she's not going to attend the academy," Stein continued. "She's much younger than any of you, so I don't want you to be mean, understand?"

The others nodded in confirmation. Honestly, they didn't understand at all. Who was going to be training with them, exactly? Maka had a strange feeling about the entire thing; it was as if something was being kept from them again. She tried to control her worrisome whims, reassuring herself that Kid would probably know tomorrow.

"I'm not sure about this," she gave in, telling the others about it five minutes later.

"Something's up again," Soul agreed. "I wonder want this girl will be like."

"I guess we'll find out tomorrow," Blackstar said eagerly.

"Hey," Soul barked. "Not cool. You heard what Stein said."

"Soul's right, you should hold back a little," Tsubaki agreed.

"Don't worry," Blackstar laughed. "I won't be too hard on her…. But I won't go too easy on her either."

"You're hopeless," Tsubaki sighed.

Soul Eater

"Liz, Patti, we're home," Kid called once he and Flander arrived at Gallows Mansion.

"Who's 'we'?" Liz asked, turning the corner with her sister in tow. They both paused when they saw the miniature gender bend of Kid hiding timidly behind her older brother. She gave a weak wave.

"She's so cute!" Patti chirped, jumping forward to give her an insanely tight hug. Despite not being able to breathe, Flander liked Patti and her hugs already.

"I didn't know you had a sister, Kid," Liz sounded amazed. "What's her name?"

"It's that obvious, is it?" Kid sighed, hanging his coat symmetrically in the closet.

"The stripes in your hair kind of give it away," Liz admitted. "So what's her name?"

"You're right," Kid said, sliding down the wall in a dark cloud of depression. "We're both a-symmetrical. We should just die."

"I don't know what you're so upset about," Liz said, glancing into the kitchen, where Flander was helping Patti make dinner. "She's actually kind of cute, and _she makes you symmetrical_. What's your problem with that?"

"I know, that's not what I'm worried about," Kid fretted, getting to his feet and turning to his weapon partner. "She's going to train in our group tomorrow. If Blackstar picks on her, then…."

"That won't happen," Liz insisted. "Blackstar may pick on people, but he won't do anything to intentionally hurt her. Besides, I'm the one who should be upset; I don't even know her name."

"If you care so much, it's Flander!" Kid was furious that Liz shrugged this problem off.

"Good," Liz praised. "Now, let's go help them make dinner."

"So, who is she really?" Kid asked Lord Death as he sat down for some tea.

"Just as I told you, Kid," Lord Death replied. "She's your sister, Flander."

"No, she's not!" Kid slammed his cup down on the table. He sighed, trying to calm himself. "Why haven't you told me about her before?"

Lord Death was hesitant. "She's been gone for a long time. I didn't think she'd ever return. I didn't want you to worry about her."

"Where was she?" Kid asked.

"With your mother."

"My mother?" Kid narrowed his eyes.

"Stein and Spirit found Flander chained in the basement of Scarlet Death Mansion. Her mother trapped her down there for several years. Flander killed her a few months ago in an attempt to escape."

"That's a little extreme, but it was understandable," Kid said, sipping at his tea. Now that he was getting some answers…. "You want me to take care of her now. Is there anything else I should know?"

"You need to be careful, Kid," Lord Death cautioned. "Flander has suffered severe mental trauma from what she's endured in that house."

"What kind of trauma?" Kid asked warily.

"Stein speculates different forms of abuse, mental and… otherwise. I want you to be on your guard. I doubt she'll harm you or your partners with how close you've gotten, but she could just be happy to see other human beings. She could grow bored of you, or angry, or upset, and kill you all like she killed a previous death scythe that tried to rescue her."

"What happened?" Kid leaned forward uneasily.

"I don't know yet," Lord Death admitted seriously. "Just be careful, okay?"

Kid wanted to press on, but thought better of it. With a glance at the clock, he realized how late it had gotten.

"I should go," he said, getting to his feet. "Flander's expecting me."

"One more thing, Kid," Lord Death said quietly. Kid half-turned. "Don't get too attached to her yet."

"Of course," Kid nodded.

"I'm such a liar," he thought bitterly, internally stabbing himself. But still, how was it possible not to absolutely love her already? Kid wanted to keep her safe forever, no matter how A-symmetrical she was.

When he got home, he found Liz, Patti, and Flander all sleeping in Liz's room. Kid smiled warmly and draped a blanket over them before going to his own room. Tomorrow, they would begin training. After gaining support from his friends, Kid was sure he'd be able to handle Flander.

** This was originally written as a cute fanfiction, but I decided to make a Psychotic edition to violence-it-up a bit. If you are here from my original, I warn you of the gore and disturbing elements about to be introduced. Please read on, and I will upload as soon as I can.**

** PLEASE NOTE: I know I'm taking a lot of elements from Touhou Project. I bought the game Ten Desires, but that's about it. I don't really know that much about Touhou or my distant-observing favorite "Embodiment of Scarlet Devil." I'm not making this a crossover, but if you have any tips and pointers about Touhou for me, please Message me or leave a review.**

** REVIEW, MINIONS, REVIEW!**


	2. Chapter 2

"I wonder who's going to be training with us today," Maka thought as she and Soul made their way to the DWMA that Saturday. The group had the entire schoolyard to themselves for training. "I hope Blackstar won't be too rough with her. He just doesn't know when to hold back."

"Stop it," Soul complained. Maka glanced at him, confused. "You're worried about the new member; I can tell by your face. Now stop it, it's bugging me."

"Sorry," Maka giggled. How was it that her partner knew her so well?

Flander's Weapon; A Weapon Inside A Stuffed Animal?

"This is her," Stein introduced the little girl to the others. They all stopped dead in their tracks. Was he serious? This pathetic child clutching a floppy lion was their new training mate?

"Wow," Tsubaki was the first to say it.

"She has the same stripes in her hair as Kid," Maka noted.

"Hey Kid, is she your cousin or something?" Soul turned to the other Reaper. Kid blushed a light shade of pink.

"She's my sister," he confirmed.

"Dude, are you serious?!"

"Focus," Stein barked. "I want you all to be careful not to hurt her, but don't let your guard down either. She is a Grim Reaper, after all."

"Even though she's clinging to a stuffed bear," Blackstar tried to contain his laughter. Stein ignored him.

"Spirit and I will be over there just in case things get… out of hand," Stein concluded, rolling away. "You can start fighting whenever you're ready."

"How is he rolling that thing on the grass?" Patti thought, staring after the teacher on his swivel chair.

"I guess there's no point in putting it off," Maka said. "Soul, transform." Her weapon nodded and reformed into a red and black scythe.

"So, Flander," Blackstar said. "You'd better drop that lion if you're going to be training. This isn't your little tea party. Now get ready!"

Blackstar charged at her, chain scythe in hand, ready to attack. Flander let out a small snort, holding Sakutaro at arm's length away from her. In a flash of dark red shards, it transformed into a large, colorful scythe. She deflected Blackstar's attack before he could do a double take.

"It transformed into a scythe," Maka realized. "How is that possible?"

"Let's go, Maka," Soul urged. Maka nodded and began sprinting towards the girl.

"Impressive," Blackstar said, picking himself up off the ground. "But I'm just warming up."

Flander gave a controlled swing of the scythe that looked too massive for her to handle. Being trapped in a basement for twelve years gave her poor social skills, and she didn't know how to hold back. She was much stronger than any of them; she clearly didn't need any training. Once she got ahead, she never fell back. By the end of eight minutes flat, Blackstar was on the ground and Maka was collapsed in a piled of roused soil. Flander prepared for a final attack.

"Maka, move!" Soul screamed.

"Aw, did she stop moving too? That's too bad," Flander said, lunging in the air and raising her weapon.

"Move, Maka!"

"Soul… I'm sorry…."

Soul gritted his teeth, becoming human again to protect his meister. Kid came forward to back him up.

"Flander, that's enough!" Kid yelled.

"Oh," Flander's face changed. "Okay!"

She flipped backwards, landing agile on her feet with the lion in her hands. Soul frowned and looked back at Maka. Kid kept his weapons skillfully aimed at Flander's unmoving form.

"You okay?" Soul asked, holding out a hand for Maka.

"I'm fine, Soul," she muttered, taking his hand and scrambling to her feet. Once she was standing again, she realized she had a burning pain in her side. She gripped at a gaping gash on her side and almost fell over. Soul put his arm under her to keep her from falling.

"Maka, you're bleeding," he said.

"Bring her inside," Stein ordered. "I'll patch her up in there."

Soul helped Maka limp inside. Blackstar, who had regained consciousness, stared after his friends in shock. He was suddenly overcome with anger. He got to his feet and stalked towards Flander menacingly.

"Hey, what the hell is your problem?!" he demanded. "You could have killed us!"

"Did I do something wrong?" she asked, tilting her head. She really didn't know what she'd done to make him angry. Was he just being a sore loser?

"Like hell, you did!" Blackstar raged on. "You almost cut Maka in half, you idiot."

"Blackstar," Kid warned, moving in front of him. "It's not her fault. Leave her alone, will you?"

"Does it hurt?" Soul asked Maka.

"I'm fine," Maka insisted. "You should be worrying about Flander."

"You're really going to worry about her right now?" Soul tried to stay calm as he said this, with much success.

"She doesn't know," Maka said. "I know why stein wants us to train with her now. She doesn't know how not to hurt people. Think about it, Soul, if every time you tried approaching someone, they're just hurt for no reason. It must be a lonely feeling."

Soul's face was bemused. After considering the options, he laughed quietly. "Trust you to feel sorry for anyone."

"What the hell, Kid?" Blackstar growled. "You're really defending her after what she did? You should be angry at her, of all people; she's you're sister and she nearly killed you friends!"

"Do you think I can do anything about that?" Kid retorted. "It's not her fault that she's like this, so just back off, okay?" Behind him, Flander whimpered in fear. She'd never seen anyone so angry since she was in the dark room. She did something truly, horribly wrong.

"You seem to be ready to defend her," Blackstar noted. "Just because you have a new sister doesn't mean you can blow us off like that. We were your friends long before you even knew about each other. Are you replacing us or what, Kid?"

Kid tensed. "Shut up! You don't know what you're talking about, so just be quiet."

"You are, aren't you?" Blackstar snarled.

"You want to go, Blackstar?" Kid demanded. Maybe Blackstar didn't have enough fighting for one day. Kid raised his weapons in a threatening gesture. "Let's go."

Maka raised her head at the sound of gunshot. She glanced out the large window of the infirmary and blinked.

"Are they training again?" she wondered.

"It looks more like they're fighting something out," Soul said. "Idiots."

"I'd better break it up," Stein said, rolling away from his desk slowly. "I thought Spirit was watching them…."

During the heat of the fight, Flander ran away into the academy. Maybe if she apologized to the nice girl named Maka, then Kid and Blackstar will forget about it. With many twists and turns, Flander found the infirmary. She paused outside. What if Soul and Maka were mad at her too?

Soul turned, hardly surprised to see the little girl hiding behind the door.

"Hey," he said. A small golden eye peeked around the door frame. "Are you lost or something?"

"Oh, Flander!" Maka greeted. "What's wrong?"

"I… I wanted to tell you," Flander stuttered, stepping into the room. "I… I'm really, really sorry! I didn't mean it, whatever I did. Please forgive me!"

Maka and Soul gave her a look of hopeless pity. "She's apologizing, but she has no idea what she did wrong. How sad."

"Um… it's alright," Maka gave her a gentle smile. Flander was surprised. "We get hurt all the time when we're training. It's good that you're strong; if you weren't, Blackstar would kill you for sure. Then Kid will have to defend you and create a rift between all of us."

"Uh, Maka, I think you've said enough…" Soul warned, looking at Flander as she melted to the floor.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to upset you," Maka thrashed her arms from side to side as if to comfort her.

"Hey, you two," Stein warned, swinging Death Scythe in between Blackstar and Kid. "This isn't the time to settle your personal battles. Where's Flander?"

Kid looked up sharply. She must have run off when they were fighting. The weapons transformed and they all ran into the academy. Stein sighed and followed them on his wheelie chair.

"Are you sure Kid is ready to help her?" Spirit asked, transforming again and following Stein at an unhurried pace.

"Of course, for now," Stein said. "Besides, this is the only way we can find out about what happened down there. I think I've finally figured it out."

"You know what happened to that Death Scythe?"

"It's pretty obvious now."

"Flander," Kid called as he burst into the infirmary. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh!" Flander squeaked, getting to her feet and backing away from him. "I-I'm really sorry, Kid, I won't do it again, I-I promise!"

Kid paused. Why was she so uneasy? Maka noticed it too; Flander's apologizing was presently different from a few minutes ago. Flander seemed to know what she did wrong, and she seemed more than sorry. No, she seemed… fearful. She was begging for forgiveness. But why? Maka knew very well that Kid would never do anything to hurt Flander.

"Flander…" Kid hesitated. "I was just worried about you, that's all. You don't need to be afraid, okay?" He stepped closer to her and knelt in front of her, putting a hand on her fluffy black and white hair. Flander looked up with an innocent expression. "Don't go running off anymore, okay?"

Flander nodded. "I was just scared," she explained as Kid go to his feet. "I wanted to apologize to Maka for what I did."

Kid and Blackstar looked at each other, realizing just how stupid the entire fight had been.

"My apologies, Blackstar," Kid set a good example for Flander. "I shouldn't have lost my temper like that."

"Yeah, I'm sorry too," Blackstar stammered, trying to seem cool. He looked down at Flander and sniffed. "Next time, go a little easy on us, okay?"

Flander smiled at him and nodded. Blackstar blushed. She was so cute yet so… violent.

"What a day," Liz remarked as they returned home later.

"That was really awesome, huh, sis?" Patti asked excitedly. Despite the long day they'd just had, Patti wasn't unwound. "I never knew Flander could fight like that! I can't wait to train again!"

"Kid," Flander asked as Kid tucked her in.

"Yes?"

"Do you like me?"

Kid smiled at her. "Of course I do. How can anyone not like you?"

Flander stiffened. Her voice was low when she answered. "She hated me. She trapped me down there forever."

Kid put a hand on her head again. He figured she liked it when he did that.

"I don't want you thinking about those things anymore," he said. "Good night, Flander"

"Good night, Nii-nii," she sighed, rolling over.

Kid paused, disturbed for a moment about the nickname, but smiled at her and got to his feet and made it to the door. He stole one last glance at her before turning out the light and closing the door halfway.

**Welcome, Minions! To LUCKY CHANNEL! Just kidding! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. What do you think about Sakutaro? Does anyone know where I got his name from? Do you know why Saku-chan can transform into a scythe? Find out… later :P**

** Review, or I'll eat YOUR FACE!**


	3. Chapter 3

"It's alright, Saku-chan," Flander murmured to her stuffed lion, hugging him close to her chest and kissing away imaginary tears. "You don't need to cry anymore. She's gone. She can't hurt us anymore."

Whether it was a dream or a nightmare, Flander wasn't sure. All she could register was that she was being awoken by a bright light and gentle shaking.

"Flander, honey," a familiar voice whispered. "It's time to wake up."

The little princess opened her eyes in a daze, somewhat angered to be awoken before she was well-rested. Liz was standing over her; it was clear she was the culprit. Flander sat up with a yawn and rubbed her eyes.

Flander's Day Out; A Wondrous Day for the One Who Was Trapped in the Basement?

"What are we doing today, Kid?" Flander asked her brother sweetly after clearing her breakfast dishes.

"It is a Sunday," Kid thought as he helped Patti with the dishes. "I guess we should go out and do something. But whatever would we do?"

"I know! Why don't we meet the others at the basketball court and hang out with them?" Patti suggested enthusiastically.

"Sounds good," Kid nodded. "How about it, Flan?"

"Yes!" Flander cheered, thrusting her two hands palm-up into the air.

"Alright, we'll go," Kid declared, wiping the soap off of his hands with a nearby dish towel. "But first, I need to check all the paintings in the house to make sure they are level with the ground."

Liz, Patti, and Flander sighed. Why… just why?

Two hours later, Flander had already drawn and colored nine pictures with Patti. They were all mildly joyous and relieved when Kid walked downstairs expressing what "perfect symmetry" was held between the walls. Knowing that the others could have started a war by now, Liz rushed the others out the door and towards the park.

When they got there, Soul, Crona, and Maka were playing a game, but stopped when they saw Kid, Liz, and Patti approaching, followed by Flander… who was clutching Sakutaro. Blackstar and Tsubaki were nowhere in sight.

"We win. Hey, Flander, what's up?" Soul greeted.

"Wow, you're cool," she said breathlessly. Soul blushed and looked away. Awesome.

Flander smiled. She loved her new friends already, and was surprised and overjoyed when she got to see them more than once.

"Hi, Flander," Maka waved politely before pulling Crona forward. "This is… oh, look," she trailed off when a large blue butterfly fluttered in front of them. "A butterfly. Isn't it pretty?"

"Yeah, whatever, Maka," Soul rolled his eyes.

"Give me a break, Soul!" Maka complained.

As they continued to argue, the bright blue butterfly flickered in fluid, complicated patterns before landing on Flander's nose. The little girl twitched slightly in curiosity. The butterfly spread his wings, revealing a rainbow of color painted across them. Flander was befuddled by the array of color and gasped.

"It's taking my soul!" she squeaked in panic. The others laughed.

"No, it's not," Kid said, kneeling beside her and holding his hand out for the insect to crawl into his palm. "It's just a butterfly. See?"

Flander opened her eyes cautiously. The others watched her as she reached out tentatively to touch the butterfly. Had she honestly never seen a butterfly before? That was… disturbing.

"She's acting like she's never seen a butterfly before," Soul told Kid as he got to his feet.

"Well, she hasn't," Kid explained. "Flander was trapped in a basement for a long time. She's just come out, so she doesn't know much."

"She was trapped in a basement?" Crona shuddered. "That's awful!"

"I have an idea," Maka said, stepping forward, kneeling beside Flander, and wrapping an arm around the small child's shoulders. "I think it will keep her interested for today."

Soul Eater

"Wow, look at that!" Flander gasped excitedly as she stood before a cage of wolves.

"Yeah," Maka smiled.

"Did you know the wolf can actually see in color, but they can only register varying shades of red, black, and white?"

Maka's jaw dropped. "No… no, I didn't."

"How did you know that?" Liz asked. "I thought you'd never seen a wolf before."

"I read a lot of books about them, but I've never seen a real one," Flander explained half-heartedly. She was still captivated by the wolves stalking about in their large enclosure of rocks and trees.

"How old did you say she was?" Soul asked. He and Kid were relaxing on a bench whilst Flander dragged Crona, Maka, Liz, and Patti around the small zoo.

"She's twelve or thirteen," Kid replied.

"Seriously? She's kind of small for her age," Soul noted inoffensively.

"She's a bit underdeveloped, but she's been doing better than my father thought she would," Kid admitted with a sigh.

"It makes sense that you're so protective of her," Soul said. "Do you know what's up with that lion of hers?"

"Sakutaro?" Kid turned his head. "What about him?"

"You know. How did he turn into a weapon yesterday?" Soul pressed.

"I don't know," Kid admitted. "I'm starting to think… she thinks it's a real person. He's the only thing she had down there, so she's naturally very attached to it. Dad thinks she tore out a piece of her own soul to create a weapon out of him, but we're not really sure yet."

"Do you think it can think for itself?" Soul wondered, trying to lighten the subject while still satisfying his curiosities.

"Maybe," Kid surmised. "She sure acts like it does. But I guess that's normal for a lonely child, right?" he tried to laugh it off. Soul laughed with him, trying not to let the disturbing thoughts at the back of his mind overcome him.

"I'm getting thirsty," Liz sighed. "I'm going to get some lemonade. Anyone want to come with?"

"I'll come," Patti volunteered.

"I think we're all thirsty," Maka agreed, pulling Flander along as they made their way to the lemonade and soft drink stand. "I'll buy for Flander."

"Are you sure, Maka?" Liz was surprised.

"Of course!" Maka smiled. Liz could tell Maka loved Flander to death already, so she nodded submissively. Maka handed the fresh, cold lemonade to Flander's patient hands. "Here. Why don't you go sit by Soul and Kid while we get the rest?"

Flander smiled and nodded. She liked that one very much. She turned on her heel, careful not to spill the drink or get any on Sakutaro.

"Taking a break now?" Kid asked as he and Soul moved over to make room for Flander to sit down. Flander sat down quietly and began sipping her drink serenely without so much as acknowledging them. She was staring intently in the direction of the others, at Crona more specifically.

"Kid, I have a question," she said quietly. "Who is that girl over there with the pretty pink hair?"

Soul tilted his head back as his nose started to bleed from the cuteness, but he immediately confronted Flander.

"He's been here the entire time!" he yelled.

"I know that," Flander whined. "I just haven't been introduced or anything yet."

"Soul," Maka barked. "Chop! Be nice!"

"What was that for?" Soul whispered from where he was collapsed on the ground.

"That's Crona," Maka answered Flander's question as she sat on a bench across from them. Crona sat beside her timidly. "He's kind of shy, but he's nice when you get to know him."

"What about me?!" demanded a small, squeaky voice as a black entity suddenly appeared on Crona's head. "You're all just going to ignore me for the day?"

"This is my weapon partner, Ragnarok," Crona said quietly. Flander smiled.

"This is my weapon, Sakutaro," she said, holding up her stuffed animal. Crona was taken aback; he didn't know what to say. "Say hi, Saku-chan."

The lion's head fell limply over its floppy shoulders, showing no sign of true life. Flander frowned disdainfully and tucked him back under her arm.

"You never talk to me anymore," she muttered.

"Does Sakutaro usually speak to you?" Crona asked.

"He used to," Flander nodded. "I think he's really shy too. He hasn't said a word since we left."

Kid tried not to grimace. How would he break it to her that stuffed animals can't necessarily talk? Kid tried not to think about it as he began drinking the lemonade that Liz and Patti brought him.

The sun was setting, and people began to leave the closing zoo. Kid sighed as he looked at the bright orange colors fade into a darkening violet sky. The scene was so peaceful and symmetrical that he wished he had a camera. He felt something nudge his side and looked down. Flander had fallen asleep in his lap. Now he really wanted a camera.

"Aw, look at that," Maka crooned.

"She's so cute when she sleeps," Patti squealed quietly.

Soul was silent, although he had to admit it; she was extremely cute when she slept. Kid grinned and picked her up off the bench. Flander stirred slightly, but merely pulled Sakutaro closer to her.

"We should be going home now," Kid told the others quietly. "Liz, Patti, come on."

"Okay, Kid."

"See you all tomorrow at school," Kid nodded to the others and turned to leave.

"She's so cute," Maka said as she, Soul, and Crona made their way back to their apartment. "I love her already. Kid is so lucky that he has a sister."

"Alright Maka, we all know you want to take her home, but don't we have a full house already?"

"Hey, hey, Soul," Blair greeted as they walked in the door. "Have a good day with all the other animals?"

"Darn it, cat, leave me alone!" he growled, running upstairs.

** Just wanted to write one last filler chapter so that you can all cherish the cute stuff before it becomes a bloody effing violent fest! Next chapter, you will all discover Flander's awful secret about Sakutaro.**


	4. Chapter 4

Flander set Sakutaro down on his back on her desk. She had an assortment of needles and buttons lined symmetrically at either end of the table. Sakutaro seemed tense, as if he was in for it. Flander smiled at him as she circled the desk.

"Don't worry, Sakutaro," she murmured. "You'll look so much cuter when I'm through with you."

Modified Soul; Sakutaro the Tortured Death Scythe?

"We're going to school today," Kid told Flander after breakfast, who had happily occupied herself in front of the TV watching anime. "We won't be home until about four, but I'll take you to the park after that, okay?"

Flander smiled and nodded. Kid didn't want to leave her inside all day, but seeing as Flander had little experience in the real world, he didn't see many other options. On the bright side, Flander had a lot more to do than she had before, so she didn't really mind that much.

Kid paused before he walked out the door. "What happened to Sakutaro's arm?"

The said character had a splash of red stitched into his left arm. Flander inspected the stitches and shrugged it off.

"We were playing," she replied. She was too interested in the anime playing to answer in detail. Kid shrugged as well. Maybe she had to stitch him up for some reason; it was an old stuffed animal.

"Alright, then, we'll be home later."

"Bye," Flander said.

She hugged Sakutaro impossibly closer as the commercials ended and the show came back on. It was a scene of two little girls running through a field of cattails. The scene changed to a much less carefree environment as someone handed the cute girl a doll. The other girl looked really disappointed even though she wasn't the type who liked dolls. Flander laughed a slightly creepy laugh that she had learned from the same anime.

"Hey, Kid," Maka greeted as her friends sat down at the desk in front of her. "How's Flander today?"

"Well, well, Maka," Kid sneered, faking disdain. "If I'd have known how much attention I would get from you, I would have gotten a sister a long time ago."

Maka laughed with him. "Sorry, but she's too cute to stop thinking about."

"I know," Kid agreed. "And, anyway, she was watching some anime when we left. Something-or other-cicadas-cry."

"When the Cicadas Cry?" Maka was suddenly wary.

"Yes, that's it," Kid nodded. "She seemed pretty happy about it."

"Are you sure she should be watching that?" Soul questioned, leaning over the desk with a serious look on his face.

"I don't know anything about it, why?" Kid admitted.

"There's just a lot of torture scenes and such," Maka tried not to shudder.

"But it could be the Kira season," Tsubaki tried to comfort Maka.

"That wouldn't be so bad," Maka agreed. She turned back to Kid. "Do you know what episode she was watching?"

"She couldn't pronounce it," Kid thought about it for a moment. "But I distinctly remember something about a doll."

"That's it," Maka put her head down on the table as if she was depressed. "She's going to go crazy."

"What's the worst that happens?" Kid asked.

"Besides killing all her friends in the most gruesome ways possible when you have an array of medieval Japanese torture weapons, she does it all while cosplaying her twin sister," Soul replied. By this time, Crona had his head on the table as well. "What was on next?"

"Coraline or something," Kid replied hesitantly. Soul put his head down on the desk.

"What kind of TV station do you let her watch?!"

"I guess I should put some kind of parental control on the networks tonight," Kid thought out loud.

"All taken care of," Liz said smoothly, filing her nails. "In America, all those scenes in Higurashi are censored. Besides, isn't Coraline naturally amined at kids her age anyway?"

Kid laughed nervously. 'Man I hope she doesn't try to kill me when we get home.'

"Professor Stein?" Maka asked after class when everyone else left. Stein paused and looked at Maka and Soul, who were standing in front of his desk.

"What's wrong?" Stein asked, lowering the book he was reading.

"Since we're training with her and all, I want to know something about Flander."

"Go ahead."

"How did Sakutaro turn into a scythe? Kid said something about tearing off a piece of her soul and enhancing it in him. Is that true?"

"Well, Maka," Stein said, turning the screw in his head. "In truth, it wasn't her soul at all. A few years ago, a former Death Scythe found her. He tried to rescue her, but she didn't understand. She wanted a friend who would never leave her, and the only way she saw that possible was if she bent his soul to kneel toward her every command. After a short amount of torture, Flander put his 'modified' soul inside her stuffed animal."

"Not cool," Soul whispered.

"Is the soul… is he still…?" Maka couldn't put it into words.

"The person is still somewhat alive in the lion, but given up after great lengths of abuse from Flander."

"Abuse?" What could sweet, innocent Flander do to harm anyone?

"Have you seen the stitches and markings on the stuffed animal?" Stein asked coldly.

Maka felt sick. The stuffed lion was a real person. And Flander tortured it every day. She remembered what Flander would tell her; Flander would cut him just a little, then stitch him back up as a reminder. Reminder of what? That she was in charge and Sakutaro couldn't escape this hell?! Maka's knees folded underneath her and she willingly crawled to her hands and knees.

"How could she do this?"

Soul Eater

"You wanted to see me for something?" Kid asked as he walked into the Death Room. Liz and Patti had already left school, so Kid was alone.

"It's about Flander," Lord Death replied seriously. Kid was surprised at his father's tone. The Grim Reaper was usually so cheerful, but today he looked depressed and almost angry.

"Is something wrong? Has something happened?" Kid thought. He was unable to speak, so he just patiently waited in silence for Lord Death to continue.

"Do you remember Flander's stuffed animal transforming into a scythe last Saturday?"

"Yes, I've been meaning to talk to you about that, actually," Kid replied. "Have you figured out anything new regarding how she does it?"

"A few years ago, a former Death Scythe by the name of Sebastian found where Flander was being hidden at Scarlet Death Mansion. He wanted to help her, but Flander didn't want him to leave, even if it was only to get help. She tortured him to death and put his 'modified' soul inside her stuffed lion, Sakutaro. He's the weapon she used to kill her mother."

Kid stopped breathing. Flander would actually….

"Modified?" Kid forced himself to speak. "What does that mean?"

"She's reformed his soul," Lord Death said quietly. "He doesn't have the zeal to fight her anymore, you see? He's totally given up."  
Kid was shaking. He needed to go home.

"What should we do?" Kid whispered.

"We haven't thought of anything yet."

"Why are you so carefree about this?" Kid thought silently, a dark aura beginning to surround him. "She's killing someone, isn't she like… a Kishin or something?!"

"I need to go," Kid said, composing himself and turning his back.

"Kid wait," Lord Death cautioned. Kid didn't listen; he was walking briskly out the door and down the hallways. He was going home. He was going to do something about Sakutaro.

Flander put the needle through the soft fabric near Sakutaro's eyes, fastening the little black button in place over his eyes. Flander lifted the lion in the air. Left… right…. She smiled at the symmetry, unaware of her growing passion, and finished sewing the last button on. She was so happy.

When she heard the front door open, she clipped the last string and sprinted down the stairs with Sakutaro in hand. She slipped around the corner a few feet in front of Kid and paused.

"Nii-nii," she greeted. She smiled and held the lion up. "Look, isn't Saku-chan cute?"

Kid felt sick again, despite the fifteen minute walk from the school to Gallows Mansion he had to calm his nerves. Without thinking, he dropped his schoolbag and lunged at her, knocking Sakutaro out of her hands. He pinned her to the ground, gripping her shoulders so hard that it caused pain.

"Nii—you're—!"

"Shut up!" he yelled. "Why are you doing this? No more, stop it!" He started shaking her roughly. "Stop it! Stop it! Stop it! Stop it!"

Flander stared at him, the corners of her mouth turning down in a wide frown of horror. Why was Kid crying? Why was he so upset?

"Kid, please stop!" she whimpered. "That hurts. I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" she wailed. Kid stopped shaking her. No, calm down, don't hurt her.

"Kid, what are you doing?!" Liz demanded as she and Patti walked through the front door. Liz tore the two apart and Patti pulled the still-crying Flander away for good measure.

"Kid, what did you do to her?" Patti asked.

"Kid, what's going on?" Liz spoke slowly. "Kid, answer me. Kid, are you okay?"

He didn't answer; he stared straight ahead, trembling. Liz wrapped an arm around her and turned her head.

"Patti, get Flander upstairs," she commanded. Patti nodded and guided Flander to her room.

"Come on, Flan," Patti tried speaking softly. "Let's go. Please don't cry."

Flander sat down on her bed, sniffling and wiping her eyes.

"It's okay, Flander," Patti said, rubbing her back. "Kid's just a little upset, that's all. He didn't mean it; it's going to be all right."

"Flander," Kid whispered as he opened the door halfway. "Are you okay?" He crossed the room and knelt on the mattress next to her. "Hey, I'm really sorry, Flan. Please stop crying."

"Nii-nii," she whispered. "I'm sorry… I'm sorry… I'm so sorry."

"Shh," Kid hushed, pulling her close. Flander gasped. He was hugging her… after he tried to hurt her? "Stop apologizing, you didn't do anything."

After what seemed like hours of Flander crying, Kid was able to calm her down enough. She fell asleep in Kid's arms. Kid sighed; at least Flander could relax. He would try to talk to her tomorrow.

Hence the psychopath learns the element of forgiveness.

**HEYY LUCKIES! This was the first psychotic chapter that I'm publishing. How will the others react when they see what Flander does to Sakutaro? Will Flander ever give up her insane ways, or will they have to destroy her? Or maybe… what do you think Saku-chan feels?**


	5. Chapter 5

Flander sat up in bed, stretching. She hadn't slept well; she had horrifying memories of Kid and the basement. She sniffled and wiped the tears from her eyes, but stiffened and looked down sharply with a gasp. Sakutaro was gone.

Kid set his bag down on the table in front of him. Behind him, Maka was chewing her nails off. Did Kid know? Would he suspect if she didn't say anything about Flander?

"K-Kid…" she stuttered. Kid turned, startling the others with his blank stare.

"Flander thinks she's fine," he said monotonously. "I'm not sure anymore."

Sakutaro's Choice

Kid sighed, setting his pencil down on his desk. School was almost over, but he was anxious to get home. What would he say to Flander? Kid glanced out the window and gasped when he saw a little girl standing in front of the school.

"What is she doing here?" he whispered, leaning towards the window. Stein noticed and calmly spoke without lowering his book.

"Kid, is something the matter?" Kid turned his head in a bit of a panic.

"My… my sister's here," Kid admitted, standing up.

"What?! His sister?!" Several students swarmed from their seats to press their faces against the window. Professor Stein tried to calm the students down as Kid made his sneaky escape out the door. Kid met Flander outside.

"Flander, what are you doing here?" he asked as he stopped a few feet away from her. "Class is still in session."

"I… I want to be with you," Flander whispered.

"Flan, you know you can't do that," Kid argued sternly. "You need to go home."

Flander bit her lip to keep from crying. She stepped forward slowly, wrapping her hands around Kid and gripping either side of his black jacket. Kid tensed as if to push her away.

"Uh—Flan," he chided. His voice softened considerably. "Hey, come on, it's only for another hour. Can't you make it that long?"

Flander hugged him tighter and he sighed, submissively wrapping an arm around her.

"We'll talk after class," he said, guiding her inside.

"Everyone just sit down," Stein barked. Everyone scattered in fear. Stein sighed and looked down at his book again.

When Kid returned, his face was bright red. Flander had her face shyly buried in his side, which didn't help with his embarrassment. Stein didn't say anything, just motioned for Kid to take his seat. Kid did so, pulling a spare chair up next to him for Flander. Flander was quiet, and occupied herself for the remaining study period by sketching a picture of Sakutaro on a piece of paper that Kid gave her.

After class, Kid waited until the hallways were clear and pulled Flander aside.

"Now," he said. "Tell me what's wrong."

Flander didn't say anything. She stared at the ground, chewing on her lip. Kid knelt in front of her and put a hand on the right side of her hair.

"Come on, what's wrong?" he pressed. "It's not like you to go walking around by yourself. Did something happen?"

"It's Sakutaro," she sniffled, nodding.

"He's gone, isn't he?" Kid realized. He got to his feet. "Come on, let's go talk to Dad."

"Okay," Flander whispered, clutching his sleeve with one hand and lifting the other up to her chest. Kid led her away to where the others stood in a group.

"What was that about?" Liz asked.

"Sakutaro's gone," Kid replied. Maka wasn't surprised after what that lion had been through. "We're going to the Death Room. You two can go home without me, I have it under control."

"You never have anything under control," Liz disagreed casually. "But fine, come on, Patti."

"Would you mind if I came with you?" Maka asked quietly, not looking at them.

"You want to come home with us?" Patti asked.

"I need to talk to you," Maka nodded. Liz and Patti shrugged and nodded for Maka to follow.

Soul Eater

"Sebastian, I'm glad you were able to come," Lord Death greeted the small lion as it walked into the room. "Would you care for some tea?"

Sakutaro nodded and walked over to the small coffee table. He was so cute for a death weapon. He was a stuffed animal for crying out loud!

"So, how've you been?"

"Considering the circumstances," he muttered. "Many would say I've been better, but in truth, I've never truly been."

"I take it you're enjoying your life with my daughter?" Lord Death was only slightly confused.

Sakutaro nodded again. He was a very shy person when he was living his own life.

"Flander calls you 'Sakutaro' now, does she? That's so cute!"

"She gave me that name after she modified my soul to keep me forever," Sakutaro nodded. "She only wanted a friend that wouldn't run away from her. I hope she isn't too torn up about this."

Lord Death was bemused about this. He'd always expected someone like Sebastian to remain loyal to their meister no matter what happened, but this was disturbing. He was willing to put up with her abuse and torture because he understands she doesn't know any better and it's best that she torture him and not a real person.

"You are a strange one," Lord Death muttered. "I see you've let her sew buttons over your eyes. Forgive me for asking, but how do you see?"

"It looks the same as it always has, looking through the eyes of a plushy. Why are you laughing?"

Lord Death composed himself when he heard the door open, and Kid and Flander walk in. Flander gasped and bolted towards them in passion, scooping Sakutaro into her arms.

"Sakutaro!" she squealed, hugging him tightly. "I'll never lose you again, I promise!"

She leaned in and kissed Sakutaro's nose softly.

They understood now. Sakutaro could live with whatever she does to him, because he's the only person she can love like this. What they had was special.

"Well, that didn't take long," Kid said. "See? I told you we'd find him."

"Sakutaro wanted to go out today," Lord Death said. He was almost playing a game with her. "He says he's ready to go home now."

"I see," Flander said in relief, smiling. Kid grinned. Of course.

"Come on, Flan," he said, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "Let's go home now."

"See you three later!" Lord Death sang, waving after them. Kid glanced backwards and gave him a small nod.

"Do you two want anything to eat?" Liz offered, going into the living room.

"No, not hungry," Maka shook her head. Soul seriously followed her lead and sat down next to her across from Liz and Patti. "We want to talk to you about Flander."

"Or rather, Sakutaro," Soul added. "Who is he?"

"He used to be a Death Scythe named Sebastian," Liz said. "Lord Death sent him to find her, but she didn't want him to leave her and get help. She tortured him to the extent that he would do anything she said. After putting his 'modified' soul in her stuffed animal, the torture didn't cease. Half the time, she doesn't even know better."

"That's disgusting," Soul spat. "Why?"

"She doesn't know not to torture people—"

"That's not an excuse anymore!" Soul yelled, slamming his fist on the table and getting to his feet. Liz fell silent. Maka put a cautioning hand on Soul's arm. He lowered his head and sat down again.

"Liz, do you even know?" Maka took over asking the questions.

"No," Liz replied, flinching. "And I don't want to."

Maka sighed. She wasn't going to get answers from these two.

Kid glanced down at Flander and quickened his pace. It was getting dark, and Kid wasn't comfortable being out so late without his weapons. Flander could have protected him, of course, had she not been falling asleep. A startling crash echoed through the street and Kid paused, scanning the area. A pre-Kishin was advancing.

"Flander, we have to—" Kid cut himself off when Flander put her head against his arm in defeat, letting sleep overcome her. "Wait, no, Flander! Don't fall asleep now! Come on, this is our lives at stake here, can't you just wake up?!"

Flander's eyes opened, but they weren't her eyes. Her irises were a bright greenish teal, and her pupils had four dots in them, like buttons. Moving on her own accord, she staggered to her feet. Sakutaro transformed into his usual crescent moon scythe form. Flander seemed to move robotically, as if it wasn't really her fighting.

As she was fighting the Kishin, Kid realized it. Sakutaro was resonating with her. He was controlling her body in her sleep. As startling as that sounded, it was quite effective. When the Kishin was defeated with nothing but a red soul in its trace, Flander collapsed to the cold ground again. Sakutaro transformed, and Kid picked them both up.

"Whatever am I going to do with you?" he thought as he began walking home again.

**As you can see, Maka is still pretty upset about what's going on with Sakutaro, but at least now Lord Death and Kid know that Saku-chan actually LIKES it and he wants to stay with her. Now, what will happen next, you think...?**


	6. Chapter 6

"Where has mother gone?" Flander sang quietly in to the empty house. "Where has she gone? Over the mountains she has travelled, to her hometown. As a gift, what has she brought me? What will she bring me? A broken flute and a modified soul…."

"Will you talk to me now?" she asked Sakutaro. The stuffed animal was still. "Let's go outside."

"No," Sakutaro thought. "Let's stay home where it's safe."

Flander didn't listen to him. Together, the pair left Gallows Mansion and walked down the darkening streets. Flander looked up at the unnaturally grey sky.

"Dark," she whispered. "Shouldn't Nii-nii be home now?"

"We should go home," Sakutaro suggested. "It's going to rain."

Flander nodded and turned on her heel. She was about to walk down the empty street when she felt someone grab her from behind.

Medusa's Plan; Will Flander Escape Before She Goes Insane?

When Flander awoke, she was chained to a wall by several restraints around her arms and legs. The room she was in was cold and dark. The only thing that confirmed that Flander wasn't dead was the echo of voices coming from a long distance in front of her.

"Make sure her restraints are tight," a man said. Flander perked. Who was that? "We wouldn't want her to escape."

Flander could now tell that they weren't far away; they were speaking through an iron door. Flander felt slightly claustrophobic as she realized how small this space really was.

"She's just a child," this voice was squeaky and rather annoying, but definitely female. "Spoiled brat."

"Don't underestimate her," a woman snapped. Flander flinched at the sound of the sharp, angry statement. This person reminded her very much of her mother. "She's still the daughter of Lord Death. Only daughter." She laughed in triumph. "When he realizes that I have her, he'll be a moth to my flame."

"What do we do with this thing?" the man snarled in disgust. Flander felt a violent jolt and gasped. They had Sakutaro!

"How cute," the annoying one sneered. "Still sleeping with dolls? Let's tear it apart!"

"I bet she loves this old rag more than her own life," the other cooed. "From what you told me, this could be a good way to mess with her later. Keep it close."

"The madness is gone, Medusa," the man said. "Your plans to create a Kishin have failed. What could you possibly gain from this?"

"If I don't get total control over the DWMA," Medusa replied as if she were talking to a child. "I hear this child is mentally unstable. It will be all too easy top drive her off the edge, then I will have my new Kishin. For now, Free, watch her; Eruka and I have plans to make. Come, Eruka."

"Flander, we're home," Kid called into the emptiness, shaking out his umbrella. "We are you?"

"That's weird, where could she be?" Liz wondered. Kid felt a growing sense of unease as he and the others searched the house. Flander was nowhere to be found.

"Kid, she's not here," Liz said seriously.

Flander didn't know if it was minutes or hours before Free fell asleep and Sakutaro could go inside the cell.

"Are you alright?"

"Now you talk to me," Flander muttered sarcastically. "Come on, get me untied. What is this place?"

"Medusa is the witch I told you about," Sakutaro replied, cutting Flander free with his scythe-blade arm. Flander rubbed her arms and got to her feet, picking Sakutaro up and slinging him over her shoulder by the straps on his back. Flander extended her forefinger and pinkie finger forward, staring ahead stoically. The floor in front of her began to glow in a skull pattern before the image of Lord Death appeared before her.

"What's up, buttercup?" he asked. "Flander, you've already learned how to summon me, I'm, so proud. How's Kid doing? He should be home by now."

"I'm not at home," Flander admitted quietly.

"Flan, it's hard to see you in the dark like that," Lord Death lowered his voice. "Where are you?"

"Some witch called Medusa is keeping me here," Flander explained in a rush. "She wants the school, or else she'll turn me into a Kishin!"

"Is Sakutaro with you?"

"Right here," Flander replied, holding her lion up in front of her.

"I want you two to get out of there. Kill who you have to, just get out of there. I'll send others out to find you. Do you know what you have to do?"

Flander nodded, but she was pulled back into the arms of Medusa. Medusa covered Flander's eyes with her hand. Flander gripped Sakutaro tightly, refusing to let him go.

"I assume she told you everything?" Medusa leered. The girl flinched again. She knew about Crona. She didn't want to be there. She was shaking. "Such a sweet, naïve girl."

"Haven't we defeated you enough?" Lord Death demanded. "You're not going to win against us."

"And even if you defeat me, I'll still come back," she retorted. "Now, you know the deal. If you give me the Academy, your precious baby girl will be returned to you. If not, I will use the instability within her to convert her soul to darkness. She's already so close with what she does to this poor, fragile stuffed animal."

Sakutaro stiffened.

They all fell silent. What could Lord Death do? He knew he couldn't give up the school, but if Flander became evil, her destructive power would render her unstoppable. They were in a tight position. Sakutaro twitched. Of course; Flander couldn't be held down by this.

"You have three days, Reaper," Medusa continued. "Each of which I will tear little Flan's soul to pieces."

"Stop talking!" Sakutaro yelled, transforming and shooting upwards. Medusa leapt away, paying cursory examination of the scrapes on her arms. Flander turned around, the light from the portal vanished entirely as they lost connection.

"Ah, so it's a weapon," she tried to keep calm as she watched the blade curve unnaturally. "No wonder you're so clingy with it. Tell me, was it fun? Torturing the poor scythe to death?"

"I said stop talking!" Sakutaro warned. Flander grinned maniacally, and Medusa could tell that this was not the same girl she had held captive a minute ago.

"What is this?" Medusa thought. "It's like she's a completely different person."

Flander lunged forward with a laugh, slashing her weapon near Medusa's head. Medusa didn't have the time to dodge the attack, hence she was nearly cut in half. She writhed on the floor a few feet away from where Flander landed.

"I wish I could stay," Flander said, assuming a casual pose leaning against the wall. "I wanted so badly to have a tea party with you, but I have to go. My older brother is waiting."

"Flander is gone!" Kid exclaimed, running into the Death Room.

"I know," Lord Death said. "Medusa has her."

"What?!"

"I've already sent Stein and Death Scythe as reinforcements," he continued. "However, Flander is probably far from there by now. I need you and the others to spread out and search for her."

"She's safe," Kid thought with relief.

"Don't think this is over yet, Kid," Lord Death warned. "She's still lost and probably injured. You need to round up your friends to find her now."

"I will," Kid nodded seriously before turning on his heel and running out of the room, followed by Liz and Patti. They didn't have a moment to lose.

"Sakutaro," Flander whined. "I'm so tired and hot."

"Do you need me to transform again?"

"No," she insisted. "We need to stay on our guard."

Flander had been walking aimlessly through the dessert for several hours now. She had made it far from where Medusa had kept he hostage in an underground shelter, but she wasn't sure if she was heading towards Death City or not. Her feet were sore and her leg burned from a horizontal cut she had acquired over a battle with Free.

"Flander, you need to keep going," Sakutaro encouraged. "Think about Kid and the others! No doubt the witch is still on our trail. Are you listening…? Flan?"

Despite being an inanimate object, Sakutaro was feeling wary from the heat as well. He couldn't stay in his other form much longer.

"Look, I think we've found her tracks!"

Flander gasped and began limping faster. She had to get away from there; she wasn't sure if she could fight them. After a good run up a sand dune, Flander couldn't take the hot, laughing sun beating down on her anymore. She caved down on her side, trembling from the pain. It was a long time before Kid's voice reached her.

"Flander!" his voice was both relieved and horrified. He threw himself off of his skateboard and to his knees beside his sister. "Flan, thank goodness. I have to get you home."

"Kid," Flander whispered, raising her head. She was speaking as Sakutaro. "Run."

"It's okay, Flander, everything's—!" he was cut off when someone grabbed his arms and pulled him back. Someone else ripped Flander from his arms.

"No!" he thought in despair. "No, Flander!"

**Cliffy…..**

** Dun, dun, DUN! I was playing Touhou 13; Ten Desires. Not quite Scarlet Devil, but I think this will give me new ideas. So, what will happen to our precious characters? What will Medusa do to them? You vote; torture, murder, or worse? Tell me what you think in a review or something. :D**


	7. Chapter 7

Kid opened his eyes wearily. He had hit his head pretty hard before, and had undoubtedly been unconscious for hours. The room he was trapped in was dark and cold, lit only by a few candles around the room. He was chained by his wrists to the stone wall; his position gave him a clear view of the table in the center of the room. There, tied to the top of the wooden table, was his sister.

"Flander!" Kid called immediately, yanking at his bindings. The wrought iron gouged at his palms and wrists, making it uncomfortable to move.

"Finally awake, I see," Medusa murmured as she slunk into the room. She motioned to Free and Eruka to leave her alone in the room with them. "Bind the stuffed animal," she commanded. "I'll deal with him later." She turned to Kid again. "I would have started torturing her hours ago, but I want you awake to hear her screams."

"Why are you wasting your time torturing her?" Kid sneered, trying to sound in control. "She won't cave. I know you want to torture me, but you're just going to let me sit here?"

Medusa laughed. "I thought about it, but then I figured it would be much more fun to torture her and see you go mad from the sound of her screams."

Kid recoiled. She had seen through his plan. Kid couldn't let her torture Flander.

"Leave her alone!"

"Oh, so you care for her?" Medusa kept rubbing salt in the wound. "Of course, I never thought the brother could love such a hideous monster. One who tortures and kills for fun? It's beyond even me."

"You don't know what you're talking about!" Kid spat. "She's not like that."

"I don't know?" Medusa questioned, picking up a sharpened tool from the table. "Well, I'll find out soon enough, won't I?"

"What are you doing?" Kid whispered. He was absolutely horrified at this point; his palms were sweating and he was trembling.

"Your Professor Stein has me interested," Medusa replied. "In dissecting my enemies and seeing what makes them tick. I don't understand the motives or reason of this girl, but I have knowledge that if I cut around her skull here," she pointed with the scalpel to a spot on Flander's temple, "I will have my answer."

"She's going to perform brain surgery?" Kid thought.

"Of course, when you're an evil witch," Medusa lifted the scalpel to the flame of a candle to clean it. "Anesthetics are by far pointless. Also, I'm not really sure what I'm doing anyway. I just know that I can stop if it gets too out of hand. Even if she's mental for the rest of her life, she'll be my little mental Kishin daughter."

"Shut up," Kid whimpered. Biting his lip to keep from getting sick.

"Without further ado, shall we begin?" Medusa chirped. She moved to stand over Flander's head. Kid was shaking so hard that the chains around his hands and feet rattled. Flander was about to have her head cut open without anesthetics. Her screams would be terrible, unbearable. What was wrong with Flander, anyhow? Why wasn't she saying anything?

"Flander, honey," Medusa murmured. "Can you hear me?"

"I'm so tired… mom," Flander whispered. Kid gasped. Did this sociopath really remind Flander of her mother? Seeing as everything is considered, the thought was up for debate. Heck, there was even a chance that Flander wouldn't feel a thing with her fever being as bad as it was.

"I'm going to see just what you're thinking right now," Medusa continued in a soothing voice. "I want to know why you do these bad things. Okay?"

Kid swallowed, waiting for Flander's response.

"She's lying, Flander!" Kid yelled when she didn't reply. "She doesn't care what you think, she just wants to hurt you!"

"Nii-nii…?" she whispered, her eyes shifting around the room. Medusa gripped her head and swiveled it back in place.

"It's just a voice in your head," Medusa soothed her. "Don't listen to it."

Medusa could have had anyone fooled, had it not been for Crona. Medusa was all lies. She didn't care about Flan like she thought she would have cared about a daughter.

"I'm going to start now."

"Okay…."

Medusa shifted her hands slightly and pressed the knife against Flander's head. Blood poured over Flander's eye. She was tense, and she began to shake and twitch. It hurt so much. What was this pain? Why can't she see anymore?

Flander let out a scream of horror and pain. Medusa laughed and cut deeper. The flesh made a sickening squelching sound as it tore. Medusa was nearing the bone now. Flander felt as if her entire body vibrated from the sudden, shattering crunch. Tears poured down her face, mixing with the blood on her face.

"Why is this happening, WHY?" she thought. "I never meant to hurt anyone. Did I ever really hurt them? I'm sorry… I'm sorry!"

"That's enough, stop it!" Kid screamed.

"Heard enough?" Medusa taunted, facing him with a merciless smile. She gave a twist of her wrist, guiding the scalpel across Flander's forehead. The little girl screamed again, satisfying her torturer. Medusa grinned wider as blood splashed across her face. She threw her head back and gave a wild laugh. This was fun.

"Stop it!" Kid sobbed.

"I see it now," Medusa giggled. "It's so fun. This is all so fun. I can't believe it, I feel great!" she laughed again. Flander writhed under her grip, whimpering and shrieking from the agony.

"Medusa!" Maka screamed, running into the room and lunging at the said witch with her scythe. Medusa pulled away, narrowly missing being cut in half again. Maka stood protectively in front of Flander and Kid, and Blackstar came to her side to support her.

"You're so dead," Blackstar snarled.

"Or imprisoned," Medusa suggested disgustedly.

"We won't let you live after this!" Maka argued.

"You won't let me?" Medusa laughed.

"I'm done with this," Maka shouted, launching her final attack. Medusa sighed somewhat submissively.

"Until next time," she sighed as she evaporated in a cloud of mist.

Maka landed on her feet, and Soul transformed again. His arm was still in blade form so he was able to cut his friends free. Kid didn't even hesitate; once he was free, he ran to Flander's side, unlatching the metal bars that held her to the table.

"How could I let this happen? It's all my fault," he thought as he tore angrily at the restraints.

"Why isn't she screaming anymore?" Tsubaki whispered as she transformed. "Is she…?"

"She's sick," Kid whispered, feeling how hot Flander's skin had gotten. "She needs a doctor now."

"We need to get her to Professor Stein," Soul agreed.

"Come on, then, what are you all standing around for?" Blackstar said hurriedly, jumping to get out the door.

Kid picked Flander up and was about to carry her out, but a slurring pain in his legs forced him to his knees. Soul came forth and took her from him. Kid reached out instinctively; he didn't want to let her go. Maka and Blackstar moved to either side of Kid to help support him.

"It's okay, we've got you both," Maka tried to calm the frantic boy. "You're safe now, don't worry."

"Flander," Kid whispered. "W-why?"

**I know it's short, but I found it fitting. Yay, they made it out alive! But still… do you think this little near-death/insanity scenario has changed Maka's mind about how Flander kills?**


	8. Chapter 8

"How is she?" Kid asked. He had been waiting outside of Stein's office for what felt like hours.

"She's fine," Stein replied. "There was no brain damage to speak of. She has a fever, but that will pass. I want to keep her overnight just in case."

"Can I see her?"

"Of course," Stein smiled and nodded. Kid sighed and walked into the small room. Flander opened her eyes and glanced to her bedside. Kid put a hand in her hair.

"Hey, Flan," he whispered.

"Nii-nii," she smiled. "Where's mom?"

Kid frowned. "She's gone, Flan. You killed her, remember?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "She killed my first weapon. I had to get even with her."

"Speaking of weapons," Kid said. "I think you'll be happy to see someone." He held Sakutaro out to her.

"Sakutaro!" she squealed quietly, hugging him to her chest. She kissed his nose.

"Hey, Maka," Soul said, walking into the dark living room in his pajamas. "Why aren't you in bed yet?"

"I… I can't sleep," she whispered. Soul could tell she was upset.

"Do you want to go see her? I'm sure Stein wouldn't mind."

"I can't!" Maka cried, putting her head in her hands and sobbing quietly. Soul frowned and moved in to sit next to her. He put an arm around her.

"What's wrong?" he asked methodically.

"Ever since I found out about Sakutaro," Maka sniffled. "I've been dying to get her away from him. How could I have been so selfish? Now I can't face her. I can't."

"What made you change your mind?"

"Sakutaro actually likes it," Maka whispered. "Flander only killed him so that he wouldn't die. Flander's first weapon was killed by her mother, so Flander just wanted Sakutaro to be safe."

Soul was listening intently to Maka's explanation. It all made sense now. Soul was glad they were able to get Kid and Flander away from Medusa before they went insane. The thought of Flander's destructive powers and any reason she'd have to become a Kishin made him uneasy.

"She's going home tomorrow," Soul informed her. "I'm sure she'd want to see you. I'll go with you."

"Thanks, Soul," Maka smiled at him and wiped her eyes.

Soul Eater

Whatever confidence Maka had brought up the other night diminished entirely as she and Soul stood before Gallows Mansion. She could hardly feel her legs as she walked inside and up the stairs. She paused outside of Flander's room, trembling. What if she was wrong and Sakutaro wasn't happy? What if she still had to save him? what about Flander and her problems?

"Come on," Soul encouraged roughly, pushing her through the door into the dark room. Flander was lying in bed, asleep, with Sakutaro under one arm. Disturbed by the sudden light, Flander tensed and opened her golden eyes. She sat up and yawned, rubbing her face. She was slightly annoyed at being woken up again.

"I'm sorry we woke you," Maka apologized immediately. Was this fear she felt? Fear of disappointing her friends but also letting Flander live as she does?

"Maka, relax," Soul whispered in her ear. "This is Flander we're talking to, not some heartless Kishin."

Memories flashed before Maka's mind. She took a deep breath and sat down on the edge of Flander's bed.

"How are you feeling?" she asked, putting the palm of her hand against Flander's forehead. Her fever was still high; that was for sure.

"Tired," Flander sighed. Maka smiled; she forgot how cute Flander was.

"You're safe now," Maka said. "You can sleep all you want."

"You wanted to tell me something," Flander disagreed. Maka inhaled. She knew she couldn't' get around it anymore.

"Flan, do you know what Medusa was really trying to do to you?"

"Make me afraid," Flander replied seriously, opening her eyes and staring straight ahead. "They never understand."

"Understand what?" Maka inquired.

"I'm already insane," Flander began. "But if I ever became a Kishin, I wouldn't do it to eradicate fear. I would do it to destroy loneliness."

Maka didn't know what she was doing until she had done it. She lunged forward, bringing Flander into a tight hug of sympathy. Maka was crying.

"You were so alone," she whispered. "All you wanted was a friend that could stay with you forever. I thought you were only angry or scared or both. You know what, Flander? You deserve to be here with Kid and Liz and Patti. They deserve to have a great friend—a great sister—like you. I only hope you can one day forgive me for my selfish hatred. I'm sorry."

"Please don't be sad," Flander whispered, pulling away. "You're the best sister in the world. And I won't hurt anyone anymore because I'm not alone anymore. I have all the people I need right here."

Maka sniffled and hugged Flander once more before setting her back down. Flander fell asleep almost instantly. Maka was so intrigued by the sleeping girl that she didn't notice Kid sitting on the other side of the bed. Kid reached forward to touch the three stripes on the side of Flander's hair.

"It's kind of funny how she refers to you as her sister, huh?" he mumbled. Maka blushed and looked away frantically. She noticed that Soul had evidently GONE DOWNSTAIRS, leaving her alone with them.

"Uh, yeah," Maka agreed, glancing over at him. she saw that Kid was blushing too. "Haha. Cute."

"Want to come downstairs?" Kid offered. "Patti made lunch for everyone if you're hungry."

Maka nodded. "Thanks for letting me come over today, Kid. I don't know what I would have done if I never knew."

"It's understandable that you felt that way," Kid said. "I just didn't want you hating my sister for the rest of your life because, in truth, I actually like you and I don't want you to feel that way."

Maka blushed again. Did he just say he liked her?

"If you kiss her, Kid, I swear I'll cut you to pieces," Soul warned, walking around the corner. Flander giggled from where she was playing possum on the bed, and Kid and Maka looked down at her in surprise.

"You were awake this whole time?" Kid was mortified.

"Wait until I tell Liz," Flander taunted.

"Don't you dare tell her!"

Maka laughed. They were really acting more like siblings should. Maybe things would be a bit more normal from now on.

Final; Flander Will Never Be Alone Again


	9. Alternate Beginning OVA

** This is an alternate opening chapter for this fanfiction. It does not affect the plot or storyline of this fanfiction.**

It was late at night in the cold streets of Tokyo, Japan. Death the Kid and his weapon partners, Liz and Patti Thompson, had just finished collecting a Kishin egg, and were making their way back to Death City. Kid was about to summon Beelzebub, but stopped walking abruptly.

"What's wrong, Kid?" Liz asked, her reflection glancing off the side of her pistol weapon form. "Why don't you summon the skateboard and go?"

"Just a moment," Kid cautioned, turning slightly. He was standing in front of a grand mansion with an iron fence around it. The mansion delicately maintained symmetry, much like Gallows Manor. Using his Soul Perception, Kid could feel… something. He wasn't sure what it was, but a deep feeling inside him irked him into investigating it.

"Kid, what are you doing?" Liz demanded as Kid pushed the iron gates out of their way.

"Something's wrong," he replied quietly. "Come on, let's go."

"Wait, Kid, that mansion looks dark and scary, can't we come back tomorrow morning?" Liz shuddered.

"No," Kid insisted. "We have to do this. I'll just take a quick look, okay?"

Liz clearly wasn't happy with that, but didn't make more sound than a few whimpers that escaped her. Kid bravely walked up the concrete steps and paused in front of the large double doors. A plaque hung on both of the doors, elegant script displaying the title of the fine building.

"Scarlet Death Manor?" Kid questioned out loud. "Why would… never mind."

Inside, it was cold, dark, and covered in cobwebs. Liz shivered delicately.

"Are you sure something's here?" she asked.

"Stay in you weapon forms," Kid advised. "If something is here, I don't think it will be particularly friendly."

He stood there for a moment, listening intently, and waiting for something to happen. He could feel something moving around near them, but it was almost beneath them now. Kid deliberated for a moment. Of course, the basement.

After searching the first floor, Kid finally found the basement door. It was red, like much else in the mansion, and the doorknob was crafted of real gold. A small golden plate hung on the door, this time reading, "DO NOT OPEN!"

Kid ignored the warning and opened the door. It was pitch dark except for the wide beam of light that flooded the staircase and a strip of the basement room. The second thing Kid registered was the overwhelming stench of blood pervading the air. He desperately put his sleeve over his mouth and nose, trying not to be sick as he tried to block out the violent scent. After regaining his composure, he walked down the stairs quietly.

Now that he was actually down there, he could see more throughout the room. there was dried blood everywhere; on the walls, on the ceiling, and on the floor, but no dead body to speak of. A small table was set up in one corner, and it seemed to be set for a child's tea party. Small porcelain dishes were set symmetrically, and several small dolls sat around it. A shuffle caught Kid's attention and he turned to the other corner. a small figure, possibly the child that set the table, was curled up in the corner, crying quietly.

"Are you a prisoner here?" Kid asked. The figure twitched and got to its feet. Kid could tell it was a child.

The figure laughed and a sharp shink echoed throughout the room. Kid tensed; a weapon! The figure charged at him with a large scythe in hand. With one hand, Kid blocked the attack and flip-twisted the scythe out of the other's hands, and with the other, gave a warning shot to the stomach.

Now that the figure was in the light, Kid saw it was just a little girl. She was on her hands and knees, gripping her stomach in pain, coughing blood on the floor. She was scrawny and frail. She was clawing at her stomach, drawing blood.

"I don't want to hurt you," he said in a firmer tone. "We've come from the DWMA, we want to help you."

"DWMA?" she choked. "I don't know what that is."

"She's definitely who we're looking for," Kid thought, scrutinizing her. "What is she?"

"The Death Weapon Meister Academy," Kid continued. The girl looked up at him and he gasped. Her eyes were a beautiful, glistening saffron color; her waist-length hair was jet black with three white stripes on the right side.

"I don't know what you're talking about!" she sobbed. She was very young. "Please, just leave me alone!"

Kid lowered his weapons, who transformed. He carefully walked towards her, but she inched away from him desperately, blood pooling on the floor, the chains around her neck rattling noisily. She curled up against the wall in fear.

"It's okay," Kid reassured her, kneeling next to her. "I didn't mean to hurt you this badly. Hold still; I want to help you."

Kid ignored her struggles and took off his jacket. He wrapped it around her shaking form. She gasped, looking up at him with her deep, innocent, striking eyes. He hurt her, and tried to kill her, but now he's willing to help her? This was the first inkling of kindness that she'd ever felt in her entire life.

Kid could tell there was something suspicious about this girl—for instance, why was she locked in the basement, how could she be a grim reaper, and why was the name Death on the front door—but he knew she couldn't answer him.

"We have to get her back to the Academy," Kid said.

"Kid, are you sure?" Liz cautioned.

Kid nodded. "There's something about her that brought me here, I need to take care of her now." He looked down at the small figure in his arms. "What's your name?"

"Flander," she replied in a whisper. "Flander… Scarlet… Death."


	10. Chapter 10

"Well…."

"Yes?"

"…" Kid didn't know what to say the morning after the incident. "Now I know why you never talked about her. My mother, I mean."

"Yes," Lord Death nodded. "It's a rather touchy subject, you know? Kyoko looked like a suitable mother for you, but after she got the daughter she wanted, she left. Of course, being a fragment of destruction, Flander became too much to handle."

"And then she was locked in the basement?" Kid guessed. Lord Death remained silent, as if he wanted to say something he didn't want Kid to fully hear. "Tell me, Father. Tell me what happened."

"I might as well," Lord Death sighed. "This is going to be a long, confusing story, so why don't we have some tea?"

One Big Happy Family; A Story of Tragedy and a Party of Triumph?

"Her name was Kyoko Scarlet," Lord Death began. "You used to be named after her, you know. Your name was Kid of Scarlet Death."

"I see," Kid said, picking up his tea cup. They were both sitting in front of a wooden coffee table.

"When Kyoko left, I changed your name to Death the Kid, eradicating her maiden name to prevent any investigating that you'd try later in life."

"I'm going to do some investigating if you don't get to the point."

"I thought Flander would like to change her name as well, but she might not have hated her mother as much as we thought, but more of that later."

"Father?" Kid reminded lightly. "Can we please stay on the subject?"

Lord Death looked away. Kid felt slightly guilty for interrupting him, but keeping secrets wasn't going to help their torn clan.

"I understand this is a tough subject to talk about," Kid continued when the other didn't. "But I need to know. Think about Flander. If I don't know what happened, how am I supposed to help her?"

"You're crafty, Kid. Okay. After Asura became a Kishin, Kyoko and I both tried to be extremely careful with you. At least I did. I didn't want Madness to take another one of my children. However, I think Kyoko had other plans."

"What do you mean?" Kid asked, narrowing his eyes at the last statement.

"I'll tell you later," Lord Death said. Kid tried to relax; he'd have to be patient this time. "As I was saying, I created you to enforce order, but… it quickly got out of hand. You'd obsess about symmetry and such at unhealthy levels."

"I'm not that bad, am I?" Kid had to make sure.

"Of course not, Kid," Lord Death put his palms forward in an inoffensive motion. "Not anymore, anyway. In an attempt to cancel out your… flaws and calm your psychosis, I had another child with Kyoko. I created her to be your polar opposite so you two would fill each other's differences and become two halves of one Shinigami to be."

"So, she was a fragment of destruction?" Kid reviewed, sipping his tea. Lord Death nodded.

"That's right! I was also thinking that when the time came for you two to surpass me, you could be there for each other… not suffer the loneliness of losing all the blood family you ever had. At the time, everything seemed perfect. We looked like a happy family."

Kid lived in the moment. There was such a thing as a happy family. Balanced.

"However, this is where it gets bad," Lord Death warned. Kid nodded seriously. He was ready to know. "It was only after Flander was born that I realized that Kyoko was abusing you at home."

"What?" Kid set his cup down in surprise; it made a noisy clatter against the saucer. He'd had no memory of that at all.

"You don't remember," Lord Death replied. "Kyoko had wanted a daughter, not a son. The only way she could get that was if you had to go. She'd hurt you a lot, which was the origin of your Madness. You covered it up and pushed the feelings away by fascinating about evenness. She wanted me to destroy you—why couldn't I see it then? I couldn't do away with you, of course; I just created something else. Kyoko got what she wanted. She took Flander and left. She beat you within an inch of your life so I wouldn't think she was kidnapped."

Lord Death looked up to see how Kid was taking this. The boy was staring at his hands, his eyes dancing with a million forgotten memories and emotions. He put one hand against his chest.

"She hated me," he remembered. "She never let me near Flander." He blinked his tears away and looked up. "I recall now, what happened to Flander?"

"I sent several search parties out, but none had ever been successful. I would never give up looking for either of you, but after all these years the chance that Flander was actually alive was pretty slim. Then the impossible happened. Sebastian, a young Death Scythe, disappeared a little over a year ago. You remember him, right?"

"A little," Kid nodded. He'd occasionally spoken with Sebastian when the weapon came to the academy from time to time. He hadn't even realized he was gone, thanks to the Asura incident.

"He disappeared from the map entirely," Lord Death continued. "He recently told me he had heard a noise from inside a mansion in a strange town and went inside to investigate. He's always had a keen sense of instinct. When he went inside, he found Kyoko passed out drunk in the living room. He found Flander in the basement. She seemed like she was suffering, like she'd lost something. She warmed up to him immediately, calling him a 'nice person.' Of course, Sebastian would have never thought that she would attack him on his way to the mirror in the hallway."

"Did he… tell you… why?"

"Yes, actually. Flander doesn't like being bored. Losing a recent playmate, possibly her previous weapon, she entertained herself by torturing him. That wasn't all though; she talked to him about how she was doing these specific tortures to immortalize his soul so he wouldn't be killed like her first weapon, you see? After that, she used him to kill Kyoko and kept him down there for a while. It took several tea parties and bed time stories before she'd even consider another world for him." Lord Death laughed. Kid couldn't help but smirk. "So, he contacted me and I sent Stein and Spirit down to collect them."

"Flander was scared?"

"I'm not one hundred percent sure," Lord Death shrugged. "I've never tried speaking to Flander about it. I just don't want her to relive anything terrible."

"I see what you mean," Kid said, referring to what he just heard and what happened yesterday. "But you told me about what happened. Maybe what Flander needs is to talk about her problems; it's a good psychological exercise for someone who's been through a lot of trauma."

"I just wouldn't know where to start," Lord Death argued. "At first, we assumed she'd been trapped in that cellar and frequently abused by Kyoko. However, she speaks of different-sounding circumstances. She's read a lot of books brought to her; she'd be at your level in school by now. The question is who taught her to read?"

"Her mother?" Kid cocked his head to the side. Lord Death tilted his head to the side as well.

"And brought them to her? No, I don't think so."

"Another weapon before Sakutaro?" Kid asked. "She said something about it; her mother 'destroyed her first weapon' so she killed her to get even."

"I hadn't sent any other weapons down there," Lord Death responded. "But it's a big world. She could have had another weapon. A weapon that cared for her."

"That's an idea," Kid nodded, taking another drink. "Whoever it was must not have known how to cook."

"Eh?"

"All Flander wants to eat is cup ramen," Kid explained with a grimace.

Soul Eater

No one would have ever thought that Death the Kid could become such a cool older brother. He'd always been like a brother to Liz and Patti, but there was still something that separated them. A wall. Since the recovery of Kid's long lost sister, they realized it was possible to break through that wall. Kid loved his sister to death, and why wouldn't he?

However, loving brother or not, he had his times were he was… neglectful of the young reaper.

"I'm going on a special mission with the girls," Kid's voice was heard over the phone by Flander. His tone was unhappy. "I'll be gone until late tomorrow night, okay?"

"But what about the movie you promised to take me to?" Flander asked.

"I know," Kid mumbled guiltily. "But I promise I'll make it up to you."

"Okay, Nii-nii!" Flander's sorrow vanished into thin air. Of course he would.

"Are you sure you're going to be okay all alone overnight? None of the others are in town, but you can stay at the academy if you need to."

"Honestly, Kid," Flander heard Liz's voice in the background. "You treat her like a child. Don't you think you're spoiling her a bit?"

"I'll be fine," she assured him. "I'm not all alone—I've never really been."

Kid heard her statement and had the inkling that maybe she wasn't alone as often as he'd been led to think. Did she create Sakutaro longer ago than he thought? Maybe she was speaking of her 'other weapon.'

"Alright," Kid agreed. "I left some money on the table for you. Go get some cup ramen from the convenience store down the street. Take Sakutaro with you."

Flander nodded, planning to find her weapon as soon as she hung up. "I will. You don't have to worry about me so much, you know. You can do a few things for yourself."

She could hear him sigh contentedly. "I have to go now. Take care of yourself."

"Bye!"

Flander's good mood dissipated as soon as it had come. She hung up and went into the living room. She sat on the couch and stared ahead sullenly. He was always busy. She put her feet up on the couch—a habit that Kid hated—and put her chin on her knees. After a few minutes, a little plush lion by the name of Sakutaro stepped into the room. He ambled over to the couch and hopped up to sit beside his meister.

"What's wrong, Flan-chan?" he asked in a babyish voice that he used specifically to address Flander.

"Kid's busy," she understood, putting her forehead on her knees as if she was going to cry. "I really wanted to spend time with him this weekend, but he's out on a special mission."

"There, there," Sakutaro squeaked. "Kid may be gone, but he still loves you."

Flander didn't reply.

"I know what we can do!" Sakutaro chimed. "We can have a pajama party!"

"A pajama party?" Flander asked, turning her head sideways to look at her friend with a new light in her golden eyes.

"Yeah," Sakutaro nodded. "We can eat all the sweets we want and stay up until we get sleepy. If we make enough noise, then maybe our friends will join us from Wonderland and Hinamizawa!"

"Yeah!" Flander cheered, shifting her legs to lie flat against the cushion and throwing her arms up in the air. "We can do whatever we want and Kid won't get cross at us!"

"But we have to keep this a secret," Sakutaro put his miniscule paw up against his non-moving lips. Flander laughed and mimicked the motion.

"No one will know," she agreed. "Because if they do, they'll get so jealous."

"Right," Sakutaro nodded approvingly. "But first, we need to fix dinner. Didn't Kid leave us some money on the table to buy fancy cup ramen?"

"And he left a lot, so we can buy whatever flavor we want."

She giggled and hopped off the couch, reaching for her pal when she realized that it was cloudy outside. She always like rainy days from the indoors, curled under a blanket with Kid, but now it seemed in the way and depressing. She reached for her coat, umbrella, and snatched the money off the table before leaving the mansion.

She bought two packages of roast beef flavored ramen noodles from the said convenience store. When she left the store, it began to rain. She shifted the plastic grocery bag to her right arm and took the umbrella out of her pocket. She fiddled with the switch on her umbrella as the rain poured down harder. One stiff blow from the wind and the umbrella was yanked from her hands. It sailed down a dark, scary alleyway before disappearing down the corner. She stared after it with a blank expression.

"I can't go after it," she alleged. "Kid said it's too dangerous to walk the streets at night."

"Flan-chan! We're getting wet!" Sakutaro squeaked from his usual perch on her back. Flander slipped the straps binding Sakutaro to her back off her shoulders, bringing him under her hunched form.

"What are you doing?" he demanded.

"I don't want you to get wet," she replied, tucking him under her raincoat. He enjoyed the warmth and dryness.

"Thank you," he said.

Once home, Flander was relieved to know the food was safe and sound. She was only remorseful over Kid's lost umbrella. He'd really liked it; it was the black one with eight cartoonish skull masks on the fabric. What was he going to say now that it was gone? Now there weren't enough umbrellas for everyone.

Flander stared into her bowl of cup ramen with a long face. Sakutaro, who was sitting beside her on a stack of phone books so he'd be able to see above the table, noticed this and tried to cheer her up. Of course, with his cute looks and kind words, he always could.

"Don't feel bad, Flan-chan," he said. "We can buy Kid a new umbrella later, right?"

Flander gave a feeble nod as her face relaxed into a passive smile. Sakutaro was pleased with his infinite success with her. They made a good team, the reaper and the death scythe.

"Hurry up and eat!" Sakutaro cheered, flapping his tiny arms. "The sooner you finish, the sooner we can celebrate!"

Flander and Sakutaro held the bash in Flander's room. Flander had dressed in her pajamas and wore her hair in two braids, (courtesy of Saku-chan).They were laughing and chatting. Life seemed at bliss. Sakutaro wasn't really sure at first about encouraging imaginary friends, especially from Higurashi, but Flander thought nothing of that. Sakutaro was the only person she truly needed.

They were both surprised, however, when an unexpected visitor joined their little sleepover. She appeared in the center of the room from a cloud of golden flecks. She was beautiful, with long wavy blonde hair and a red and golden Victorian dress. Flander could see her soul; she was a witch.

**Hey ya killers and psychopaths! Don't say anything perverse about that scene with Saku-kun in her coat, okay? n.n" What's going to happen to our darling Flan-chan now? Going head-to-head against another witch?! Preview for next episode, commence!**

"Oh, I see I've found you. Don't look so frightened, I'm just a witch."

"Oh, I see!" Flander chirped. "So you're a good witch."

"You're very cute. I wish I could use my magic to make you happy."

"Who says you can't?"

"Uh—wait, didn't Lord Death make some kind of law against that?"

"No, why?"

"Um… okay, if you say so."

"I, Flander Scarlet Death, acknowledge you as a good witch. You can do what you please now."

"Are you sure this is a good idea, Flan-chan?"

"Oh, come on; flying isn't that dangerous!"

"On the next episode of Soul Eater," Sakutaro squeaked. "Believe in Yourself; Jumping Off the Roof Isn't That Dangerous?"

"Read it, or I'll reap your soul!"


	11. Chapter 11

Flander and Sakutaro had been chatting happily when a sudden ghostly noise caught their attention. A cloud of golden glowing butterflies appeared in the center of the room and dispersed to reveal a beautiful witch. Sakutaro was immediately uneasy, for he knew of the grudge between reapers and witches. Flander clung to Sakutaro, waiting for him to transform if she needed to defend herself.

The witch languidly turned her head. "Oh, I see I've found you."

Sakutaro and Flander stiffened. Why had she been looking for them?

"You don't need to look so frightened," she smiled at them. "I came to return this."

She held out a perfectly folded black umbrella. Flander gasped as she took the object, shifting Sakutaro to her other arm.

"That's Kid's umbrella. But, how did you—?"

"I was flying along in the storm when a broken umbrella bumped into my head," she rubbed the back of her head wittily. "And I figured it was the perfect thing to keep me dry. After a while, I thought it would be nice to return the umbrella to whoever lost it, so I found you here."

"Oh, I see," Flander laughed and nodded melodramatically. Sakutaro relaxed. It was just a witch doing something nice. The instance was rare, but possible. "Thank you very, very much."

"You're very cute," the witch smiled. "Those stripes in your hair—are you the daughter of Lord Death? I wish I was allowed to use all my power to make you happy. I'm sure your smile can light a city."

"Who says you aren't allowed?" Flander asked. The witch looked at her, baffled.

"Uh, didn't your father make some kind of law against witches or something?"

Flander shook her head. "Not that I know of." She opened her eyes and hummed once. "What's your name?"

"I am the witch Beatrice," she replied. Flander slid off the bed and stood at her full (almost) five feet.

"Well, then, I, Flander Scarlet Death, acknowledge you, Beatrice the Golden, as a good witch. You may now do goodness with your magic as you please."

Beatrice stood there for a minute in total shock. The word of a reaper was final, but she'd never known such kindness from one before. Her mouth twisted into a smirk. This was perfect.

Believe in Yourself; Jumping Off the Roof Isn't That Dangerous?

"So, tell me, Fran Doe," Beatrice began, sitting on the large bed and joining their party. "Why are you and Sakutaro so alone?"

"My big brother and his weapon partners are out of town tonight," Flander sighed, taking a package of Pocky off the center of her comforter and handing it to Beatrice. "He's really busy this week."

"I was alone a lot as a child, too," Beatrice whispered sympathetically.

"I'm not all alone; I have Sakutaro with me! And before I had my Nii-nii, I had a sister!"

"I see," Beatrice nodded. "Your weapon—he's been created by your own soul reaping abilities, yes? I've heard of your loyalty to each other, and I say I'm quite impressed. Even the strongest of pairs doubt each other every now and then, but you and Sakutaro remain strong like one entity."

Flander smiled, flattered.

And this is how the night continued. After hours of gossiping and having fun together, Flander fell asleep in Beatrice's lap. She never knew of Lord Death's aversion to witches, but if she had, she'd think that maybe Lord Death was wrong to detest all witches. Maybe there is still some good left in the witch world.

Monday morning was a snap. Flander was so happy to see Kid and the sisters home again. Even with her many visits from Beatrice, she still missed them. She woke up in a hurry, bolting down the stairs and around the corner to the kitchen. Kid was leaning against the counter with a cup of coffee in his hands, staring intently at a painting across the room.

"Nii-nii!" she cried, bolting across the kitchen to hug him. He swayed to the side as she wrapped him in a death grip, almost spilling his drink, but soon regained his balance and embraced her. She buried her face in his chest, taking in his comforting scent.

"Hey, Flan," he greeted, patting her head like he knew she liked so much. "How was your weekend?"

"I missed you," she said. Kid stiffened and glanced at the clock, unsure if he had time to comfort her if she broke down on him. On the other hand, he was surprised when she looked up with a bright smile on her face. "I had lots of fun too! We had pajama parties and we watched movies together and—"

"So much for keeping it a secret," Sakutaro thought from where he sat at the table.

"Slow down, now," Kid cautioned. "It's seven in the morning, since when were you so… cheerful?" Flander was usually the image of Patti on a rage in the mornings.

"You sure have a lot to say this morning," Liz noted as she walked in with an empty Brooklyn-themed coffee mug in hand. "I never hear you talk about anything we do together this much. Do we bore you now?"

"No, Liz," Flander laughed at her teasing housemate. Liz was a great person and all, but Flander had never really called her a sister—or anything remotely close—yet.

"I'm glad you had fun," Kid dumped his own coffee out in the sink. "Right now, Liz, Patti, and I have to get to school, but I'll take you out to dinner when we get back, promise."

"Uu!" she exclaimed. It was a sound Kid had never heard before, but it was cute nonetheless. "You pinky promise?" she dared, holding out her pinky finger. Kid laughed and hooked his finger in hers.

"You got it."

Flander went outside so she could watch her brother fly off on his skateboard. She felt another pang of jealousy as she saw him weave through the air like a bird. Kid could fly, Beatrice could fly, so why couldn't she? She turned to the small bench in the rose garden and sat down. This was her not-so-secret meeting place with Beatrice. The golden witch appeared before her, waving a fan underneath her chin idly.

"My, my, it is hot today, isn't it?" she asked, turning to her friend. "Why so blue, Fran? I thought you'd be happy when your brother returned."

"I'm happy," she mumbled. Beatrice frowned.

"Fran Doe?" she asked nicely, leaning towards her. "I have something for you."

Flander raised her head. "Huh? What?"

"How would you like to have special eyes?" Beatrice continued. "I can give you special eyes so that only you can see me. Then I'd be able to come to you whenever you want and Kid won't know."

"Uu!" Flander smiled, getting to her feet and holding her hands in front of her. "Yes, please!"

Beatrice nodded and put her hand in front of Flander's eyes. Two small butterflies apparated from the darkness and flew into Flander's eyes. When Beatrice put her hand down, Flander's eyes were golden with red flecks. Flander smiled in approval.

"Now only you and Sakutaro can see me. Since Sakutaro's soul has been linked to yours through your soul reaping, he is a part of you. The spell will only become inactive for him if you deny him in any way."

"Thank you, Beato!" she cried. Beatrice smirked good-naturedly at the nickname.

"Anything for you. Now, do you want to tell me why you were so upset earlier?"

Flander looked down. "It's so unfair that Kid gets to fly around all the time. Dad gets to fly too, if he wants, so why can't I?"

Beatrice blinked and began laughing. Her laugh was like the call of a dying cicada or an exotic bird. It was a nice sound to Flander. She closed her fan with a crack.

"If it's flight you want, I shall give it to you," she said. "Do you want to learn how to ride a broom or skateboard, or do you want to have wings of your own?"

"Wings, I guess," she replied after a short deliberation. "I'd never lose them or break them as easily, right?"

Beatrice nodded. "I can't construct wings big enough to support you as well as attach them to your body with magic alone. We'll have to make them ourselves."

"Uu!" Flander nodded excitedly. "What do we need to do?"

"First, we need to find the materials. As your personal witch, I can give you any kind of bird wings you want, but, as a Shinigami, I think you'll look better with wings made of iron and shards of Kishin souls. What do you say?"

"Yeah!" Sakutaro and Flander shouted in unison.

"Hey, Kid," Soul greeted at school.

"How's Flander?" Maka asked.

"Good morning to you too," Kid smirked. "I was gone for two days, you know. Did you miss me?"

"No, now how's Flander?"

"She hasn't said a word about you," Kid said spitefully. "She doesn't even remember you."

"Maka CHOP!"

"I see you've seen through me. Again." He sighed, knowing it was pointless to argue. "She said she had a lot of fun while we were gone. She barely wanted to stop talking about it."

"Really?" Maka blinked. "She's usually so bored, though. What do you think they did?"

"She talked about parties with Sakutaro," Kid shrugged. "I'm glad she had fun. It was better than what could have happened."

"What do you mean?" Liz asked. "Hey, Kid, I think you've been a bit too worried about her lately. I thought she stopped hurting Sakutaro when she found out she didn't have to in order to keep him immortal."

"That's not what I'm worried about," Kid admitted quietly. "What happened a few weeks ago with Medusa… she was so helpless and I couldn't do anything about it. If it weren't for her grim reaper healing powers, she would have died and there was nothing I could have done to stop it. It… it was my fault she was ever hurt that badly."

"Kid, you can't honestly think that," Liz alleged.

"It's not your fault at all," Patti echoed. "You're the best big brother ever; how could you control it?"

"That's not all, though," Kid muttered, keeping his eyes downcast. "She's been having nightmares."

Maka shuddered.

"About Sakutaro…."

He thought back to only a few nights ago. He'd been sleeping peacefully when he was awakened by an ear-piercing scream. Once recognizing it as Flander's, he rushed into her room to see what was wrong. Her body was underdeveloped and fickle, so her scars could have been relapsing; someone could have very well been in her room as well. The thought of someone breaking into his home and hurting his sister made him sick. However, instead of mortal danger, he found she was in a feverish, disturbed sleep.

"Sakutaro!" she screamed. "Sakutaro!"

"Flander, wake up! It's just a dream, you're okay!"

Flander shot upright like a bullet. She was gasping for air and sweating. Kid drew her close in comfort.

"It's okay," he murmured. "Calm down. Sakutaro's fine."

"But he was hurt," she cried. "And all the blood and he was crying and I couldn't help him…."

"Shh," he soothed her. "It was only a dream, Flander."

He stayed with her that night.

"Do you think I'm being paranoid?" Kid turned to his friends.

"Of course not," Maka said. "It's only natural that you'd want to protect your sister, and that's good. She feels lucky to have you as a brother, you know?"

Kid smiled. "She's lucky to have you as a sister, too, you know."

He looked up at her with unfathomable golden eyes. Maka blushed and looked away.

Soul Eater

"How do you like them?" Beatrice asked after she implanted the wings in Flander's back. Flander looked at her reflection in the mirror in front of her. It was Beatrice's mirror, so there was no way to contact Lord Death; wasn't that neat? The wings were constructed of two bat-like iron poles and shards of souls. The souls were all different colors, adding depth and mystery to their creation.

"Uu!" Flander replied enthusiastically.

"Good," she nodded and snapped her fingers. The mirror dissolved.

"Shall we practice?"

"Yes!" Beatrice snapped her fingers again and they were both standing on the roof to Gallows Manor. Flander could see the entire city from her spot.

"I can see forever!"

"Imagine what you'll be able to see when you can fly," Beatrice said. "Now, I want you to remember one thing and one thing only. This is the rule without any exceptions whatsoever."

Flander waited for the explanation.

"Always believe in yourself," Beatrice said seriously. Flander was surprised, and found herself thinking of Saturday night. That was the last night she'd ever had nightmares about Sakutaro.

It was late, and she awoke crying her heart out. She wanted her big brother. She held Sakutaro close as he tried to ease her tears. She looked up when someone appeared on the bed next to them. At first she thought it was Kid, but she was equally happy with who she did see.

"Beatrice!" she cried. "Beatrice!"

"What's wrong, Fran-chan?"

"I had a nightmare," she whimpered. "About Saku-chan. And he was hurt by an evil witch, and I couldn't do anything about it!" she sobbed.

"Stop that," Beatrice chided kindly, taking an embroidered handkerchief out of her pocket and drying Flander's tears. "You don't need to cry. You and Sakutaro are safe now, and I'll make sure it stays that way."

Flander sniffled and relaxed a little. "C-can I call you Beato?"

"Of course," Beatrice agreed.

"Beato, will you sing to me?"

Beatrice nodded again. "Tsuki ga nobori hajimeta koro mita sarete yuku karada nanairo hikaru tsubasa wa sotto iro wo kae tojite yuku...  
Nari hibiku tokei no hari ga yagate kokoro wo kowashite iku yo dakara somatta akai hitomi wo tojita mama ryoute de mimi wo fusaida tsuki ga kieru made…. Now it's your turn."

Flander began singing shyly. Her voice was very advanced and angelic. "Tsuki ga nobori hajimeta koro mita sarete yuku karada nanairo hikaru tsubasa wa sotto iro wo kae tojite yuku... um…." She blushed, obviously forgetting the lyrics. She smiled and continued humming the tune. "Uu, uu, uu…."

"That's beautiful, Fran Doe," Beatrice approved.

Flander smiled at her. That was the last night she had nightmares.

"I believe in myself and I believe in you, Beato!"

**Next Chapter! Yay! The chapters are getting much longer now, right? Is that a bad thing? :/ ? Anyway, how do you think the next chapter will end? In triumph or in tears?! Preview for next chapter, commence!**

"What were you doing on the roof?" Kid asked.

"Just playing with Beato!" Flander replied.

"Beato? That's a new one. Sakutaro, what's your story?" Kid turned to the lion. "Sakutaro? Are you listening? Come on, say something. What's up with you?"

"In the next episode of Soul Eater," Sakutaro chirped. "A Leap of Faith; Beato's Dangerous Game?"

"Read it," Flander added. "Or I'll take your soul."


	12. Chapter 12

Beatrice began instructing Flander on how to fly. "I want you to stand over there at the far end of the roof. First, I want you to run off the other end. Don't get scared—just remember what I taught you."

"Always believe in myself," Flander told herself mentally.

"Next, and this is the tricky part to having wings, you need to move your wings."

"Like a bird?"

"No, these wings are different. You don't need to flap them, otherwise they'll get stiff or break. You need to find the right angle to tilt your wings and the wind will carry you up. You can sway them occasionally if the wind changes, but keep them remotely still. If you run with them unsheathed, you may topple over as well, so wait until the last possible moment to unsheathe your wings. I'll be flying right next to you the entire time if you fall, I promise."

"Pinky promise?" Flander extended her hand. Beatrice nodded and entwined her little finger.

"You better believe I do," Beatrice nodded. "Now, are you ready to try?"

"Uu."

Sakutaro climbed onto Flander's back as she began to run. The wings had been fashioned to unsheathe around him instead of spearing him like normal wings would. Flander inhaled, trying to calm her raging nerves. All it took was a little faith and belief. Beatrice was there for her. She believed it. With that final thought in mind, she bolted forward as fast as she could, the drop at the end of the building coming closer and closer to her. She took a couple more bounds and there was no ground beneath her. She dug her toe into the roof, built up all her strength, and jumped off, spreading her arms out.

The school bell finally rang, and all the students began making their way home. Once out the main gates, Kid glanced at the lowering sun. Now that it was autumn, the days were so much shorter.

"Hey, you two," he said to Liz and Patti. "Would you mind transforming so I can summon my skateboard? I want to get home faster."

"Sure thing," Liz nodded.

"Kay!" Patti agreed.

As they were flying home, Kid felt a sudden feeling of uneasiness as he remembered Flander's nightmares again. If he wasn't cautious, she could go mad. He brushed it off; she seemed happy, and he would watch out for her. He always did. However, when he came in view of the house, he didn't expect to see his little sister running off the edge of the roof.

"FLANDER!"

A Leap of Faith; Beato's Dangerous Game?

Fear sliced into him like a knife. No matter how fast he raced toward Flander's falling body, he couldn't go fast enough. He was suddenly glad he'd taken the board; otherwise what would have become of the younger reaper? He was screaming her name repeatedly, but she didn't seem to hear him. He knew she was angry at him, but how could she do this? To throw herself off the roof….

Just as Flander's feet left the surface of the roof and she was about to open her wings, she felt someone grab her and hold her tightly. At first, she thought it was Beatrice correcting a screw-up, but when they reached the ground, she saw it was Kid. Kid threw his weapons aside as soon as he was off the board. They transformed and moved as far away from him as the small corner of the garden would allow. An angry Shinigami was a scary Shinigami.

"What is wrong with you?!" Kid demanded, shaking Flander roughly.

"Uu… Kid, I-I'm sorry," she stuttered, staring up at him with fear in her eyes. She'd never seen him so upset before.

"You idiot!" Kid was still yelling at her. "Are you hurt? What makes you think you can jump off a high place like that?!"

"I don't know what you mean," Flander whispered, tears of confusion filling her golden eyes. Kid felt like both hitting her and hugging her at the same time.

"Flan… that's no excuse! Don't you know any better than to jump off the roof of the house?"

"But Kid, I was just… I didn't mean to…" she looked down sheepishly, wringing her stuffed animal in anxiety. "Uu."

Kid was silent for another second before wrapping his arms around her in a tight hug. Yelling would get them nowhere at this point; she didn't know what she'd almost done. Kid was just glad she made it to the ground in one piece.

"Please don't do that ever again," he whispered. He pulled away. "Dinner's off; I want to take you to the academy."

"But you promised—"

"I know," Kid interrupted. "But we need to tell Dad, okay? I'll take you out tomorrow."

"But Kid, I'm hungry."

"You can eat there," Kid interrupted her again, picking her up and putting her on the back of his skateboard. She wrapped her arms around his waist as the board began floating. "Liz, Patti, we'll be back later. Eat dinner if you want, I think we may be a while."

Soul Eater

As they flew over the city, Flander felt intense joy and a little jealousy. The height and the air rang through her soul and she briefly felt her wings break out of her back with a flash of white light. Kid almost looked back at her, but Flander quickly concealed the wings again; she didn't want him to see them yet. If it made him upset, he might get rid of them. Flander looked behind them, but Beatrice was nowhere in sight. It seemed she disappeared right before Kid caught Flander.

Once at the academy, Kid took Flander straight to the Death Room. He was practically dragging her by her wrist whilst Flander wrung Sakutaro's head off in worry. Lord Death and Spirit were chatting casually when they entered the room. They seemed surprised at the sudden entry, but Lord Death was happy to see them nonetheless.

"Hi Kiddo, Flander," he greeted. "Always glad to see you. What brings you here today? Is everything alright?"

"Flander jumped off the roof," Kid spoke in a rush.

Those five words echoed throughout the room for a few seconds as everyone tried to grasp that. Suicide? Flander?

"Flander, what is he talking about?" Lord Death asked in a serious voice.

"I… um…" Flander began wringing Sakutaro's neck again. "Uu…."

Again with that odd squeak.

"She almost died," Kid continued, the shock of the event making his voice faint and his hands shaky. "I was able to catch her in time."

"I didn't try to kill myself," Flander whispered.

"Oh?" Lord Death prompted. "Then what were you doing on the roof?"

"I was just…" Flander looked down nervously. Why was everyone so upset about this? "Uu… uu."

"Just tell me, then we'll forget the whole thing."

Flander had wanted the entire flight thing to be a surprise, but she was scared now. What if they didn't like it? What if they made her get rid of her wings?

"I was just… playing with Beato!" Flander clarified, raising her head.

"Beato?" that was one Kid had never heard before.

"Uu!" she talked about this person like she talked about Maka. "Beato and I were just playing, that's all."

"Okay, then!" Lord Death waved it off. Kid was appalled he would just shrug something off like this.

"What were they doing playing on the roof?!" Kid interrogated.

"Listen, Flander," Lord Death put one large finger on the top of the said girl's head. "It's dangerous to play on the roof. Don't do it anymore, okay?"

"Okay!"

"How did they even get up there?!"

Kid was raising his voice, and Flander didn't like it. Kid put one hand on her back, as if to shove her forward, but felt something warm and wet under his hand. He pulled away slowly, staring at his blood-coated palm in disbelief.

"Flander, you're bleeding," he gasped. He frantically turned her around to see blood cascading down her back like a water feature. "How did that get there? What happened? That wasn't there when I found you…." He thought back to when he hugged her. There wasn't any blood then, was there?

"That looks bad," Spirit noted, stepping towards them.

"Indeed," Lord Death agreed. "Spirit, will you take Flander to the infirmary? I'd like to speak with Kid alone."

Lord Death waited until Flander and Spirit were gone to continue.

"Kid, I'm only going to ask this once. Did you hurt Flander on your way here?"

"No."

"Okay, then! I guess there's nothing else to discuss."

"How can you just shrug this off?" Kid demanded. "Are you even worried at all?"

"Of course I'm worried," Lord Death argued in a slightly angrier tone. "Flander is my daughter and I worry about both of you more than you can ever understand. I can't let her see that is all."

Kid swallowed as he considered this. "You're right. I apologize; I shouldn't have made such assumptions about you, Father. I realize that you have everything under control, and I'll trust you to that."

"You try too hard, Kid," Lord Death waved it off. "Things happen. You don't have to make up for what happened with Medusa. It's not your fault, so just relax a bit, okay?"

"I just feel like I can't leave her alone anymore."

**There—a slightly shorter chapter if the last two were too long. I don't know; Umineko no Naku Koro ni is my muse this time, and they fit A LOT in one episode, so I've been accidentally structuring the story like it. Don't worry, I'll get back in the swing off Soul Eater, I promise! **

"That reminds me!" Lord Death sang. "Halloween is coming up soon, isn't it?"

"You just had to change the subject, didn't you?" Kid sighed.

"I was thinking you and Flander could provide the entertainment this year."

Kid choked on his tea. "I beg your pardon?!"

"I was thinking you could do a lovely duet. You know, I've always wanted you two to do something together, but with Flan being gone all these years, you know…."

"Save the guilt trip, I'll do it."

"Yay!"

"Why are the lyrics in Japanese?"

"I thought the tune was catchy."

"This is the same tune Flander always sings," Kid realized. "Huh."

"On the next episode of Soul Eater," Sakutaro chimed in. "Practice, Practice; A Duet for the Gods?"

"Read it," Flander warned. "Or I'll take your soul."


	13. Chapter 13

"I just feel I can't leave her alone anymore." Kid thought about it. Flander had been doing so many strange things lately, and now this thing with 'Beato'….

"That reminds me, Halloween is coming up soon, isn't it?"

Kid sweat-dropped. Of course he was going to change the subject now.

"Random, but yes. It's only a few weeks away. Why do you ask?"

"I was thinking we could host a party this year," Lord Death suggested.

"We do that every year," Kid said, not sure where he was going with this.

"I know, but this will be the first year with Flander," the Grim Reaper continued. Kid smiled fondly at the thought of his sister.

"Yes, I suppose it is," he said, sipping his tea.

"And I was thinking since you're both here, you could perform a sort of entertainment for the guests."

Kid choked on his drink. He stared at his father with a look of horror in his eyes.

"I beg your pardon?!"

Practice, Practice; A Duet for the Gods?

"I know you've been playing the piano for a few years now, and I think your friends would like to hear your progress," Lord Death continued. Kid blushed. Not very many people knew he practiced the piano; he wasn't very good at it.

"Em… Soul is much better," Kid countered, trying to get out of public embarrassment.

"That's not the point. The point is my two children doing something together. I couldn't care if you blew it entirely."

"That's reassuring."

"Kid, I've always wanted you two to do something like this. However, with Flander being gone all these years…."

Guilt trip~!

"Okay, I'll do it," Kid sighed, setting his tea cup down. "I'll play the piano. What will Flander be doing?"

"Singing of course," Lord Death replied matter-of-factly. Kid looked up at him again with a less astounded expression. "She has a beautiful voice, don't you think?"

"Y-yeah," Kid nodded. He'd heard Flander sing once or twice, but the songs weren't always very… good.

"Surrounding a round table, with a poor robin.

Tenderly embracing, holding it up, then squeezing it tightly.

And a smile overflowing with joy comes out.

Your insides came out, like a pumpkin's face."

"What will we be performing?" Kid asked, eager to forget the gruesome song he'd heard Flander singing earlier last week.

"It's a song called 'Moonlight Shines.'" Lord Death pulled a stack of pages from underneath the table and began looking over them. "I don't know how I found it, but I read through it and thought it was kind of fitting."

"Fitting?" Kid questioned as he took the papers. There were sheet notes for him and lyrics for Flander.

"Yes. It's ironic, but it's the same tune that Flander always sings."

Kid read through the Japanese words and asymmetrical notes quickly. "The party is in a few weeks. How are we supposed to learn this?"

"That's not my problem," Lord Death turned away. Kid curled his fingers.

"Of course it isn't." He got to his feet. "I'll show Flander and we'll start practice tomorrow."

"Hey, sis?" Patti asked her sister over their dinner of macaroni and cheese. "When do you think they're coming home?"

"I don't know, Patti," Liz replied simply. "Knowing them, it could either take a moment of explaining, or it could lead to a long and detailed conversation."

"Do you think Kid likes Flander more than me?" Patti asked. Liz stared at her sister with searching eyes.

"Why would you ask that?"

"Why wouldn't you answer?" Patti replied smartly. Liz averted her gaze. She didn't know how to explain Kid and Flander's relationship.

"Well… you like Kid, right?" Liz asked. Patti nodded.

"Of course I do."

"And you like your big sis, right?"

"Of course I do, Sis. Does Kid feel the same way towards Flander?"

"Yes," Liz nodded. "But if you had to choose… between me and Kid… do you know who you'd choose?"

"I'd choose both of you!" Patti replied with a smile. She obviously didn't understand.

"No, Patti," Liz corrected. "You can only choose one of us. I know you love Kid like a brother, but I'm your real sister. If you had to choose one of us, who would you pick?"

Patti thought about this for a moment, her big blue eyes filling with tears as she considered this.

"But Sis…" she whimpered. "I don't want to choose!"

Kid went to the infirmary to pick up Flander. He expected to wait a while, but what Naigus told him gave him a shock.

"How is she?" Kid had asked when he entered the dispensary. Flander was sitting on the bed, swinging her legs back and forth childishly. Kid hadn't expected her to take this seriously anyway, although she seemed high on energy despite the blood loss. She was eating a red apple that Naigus gave her.

"I cleaned up the blood, but I didn't need to bandage her up," the nurse replied. "There were no wounds."

"What?"

"There were no injuries to speak of. I tested the blood that was on her, and it was hers without a doubt. However, I thoroughly checked her body for any injuries."

"And then there were none," Flander chirped.

"She is a reaper, albeit a weak one," she concluded. "Her powers can splurge at odd times. I'm sure that's it."

"I guess you could be right," Kid nodded and turned to Flander. "Are you ready to go home now?"

Flander nodded, hopped off the bed, skipped over to Kid, and gripped his sleeve. She smiled at him and he reluctantly returned the smile. What a weird day.

Soul Eater

Kid looked over the sheet music for Moonlight Shines the next morning. He was leaning on the counter with his elbows propping him up, paper in one hand, spoon in the other. He stirred his coffee in figure-eights as he translated the complicated melody. Flander noticed his preoccupied expression when she walked into the kitchen. Usually, she'd hear a cheerful 'good morning, Flan,' but none came today. She stood next to him with a bowl of hot ramen noodles.

"Nii-nii, whatcha doing?" she asked. Kid sighed and set the paper down. He gave her a thin smile and slid the lyrics across the counter.

"Father wants us to perform a duet at our upcoming party," he explained. "I was in a rush yesterday, so it didn't really come up. You'll have to learn the Japanese lyrics, which will prove a challenge since the party is to be thrown in a couple weeks, but I'd be happy to help you."

Flander glanced over the lyrics and beamed at him.

"I already know these lyrics!" she chimed. Kid dropped his spoon, letting it swirl aimlessly in his cup.

"Y-you do? Where in the world did you…?"

"Beato sings it to me every night," Flander continued. "Sometimes I sing with her. This will be a lot of fun Kid, I'm sure I won't let you down."

Beato, Beato…. Flander didn't play with imaginary friends. Besides, why would she know the lyrics?

Kid was sitting at the piano with the sheet music in front of him. The song was eight minutes long—Death, bless symmetry—but the first four minutes were instrumental. Kid was nervous about having all eyes on him for the first four minutes of the presentation, then afterwards Flander began singing her piece.

"Toji teta tsubasa hiroge karei ni mai chiru kokoro ni hisomu yokubou somatta akai karada wo oouyou ni hikari wo kuguri hashiru no you ga akeru mae ni… um…."

Flander faltered and Kid glanced up from the ivory keys. She'd forgotten the lyrics. Flander thought for a moment before nodding to herself and raising her chin.

"Uu, uu, uuUUuU!"

Kid couldn't keep playing. His hands retracted to grip his sides as he began laughing. She was just so cute! Flander smiled sheepishly at him.

"Forgot the words?" Kid asked.

"Forgot the words," Flander nodded. Kid got to his feet and ruffled her hair.

"Let's take a break," he suggested.

"Kid! Flander! Are you ready to go yet?!" Liz called up the stairs.

"For what?!" Kid called down. He'd usually intensely dislike yelling in the house, but he didn't particularly care right now.

"Hello? Training with the others, remember?!" Patti yelled.

"Oh no, I forgot!" Kid cried, grabbing his jacket and bolting out of the music room. "It's Tuesday; we're supposed to meet the others in the woods to practice our resonance. Flander, get your shoes on and bring Sakutaro!"

"Yes~!"

"Girls, transform," Kid commanded in a rush, glancing at his watch and summoning his skateboard once they were outside. "Flan, get on. We're in a hurry."

"I can't believe you forgot," Flander mumbled as she stepped on the back of the board and wrapped her arms around his waist. "I remembered. _Me_."

"Then why didn't you say something?!" Kid demanded as they flew at an alarming 88 miles per hour. "We can't be late! It's improper to not be on time! I can't believe I let this happen—I can't believe _you_ let this happen. I hate you sometimes Flander, I really hate you!"

Flander laughed as they continued. Patti would have joined her, but the thought of Kid forgetting something that they were doing together as partners weighed too heavily on her mind. They made it on time, just barely, at their designated spot. The others were already there.

"Hey, Flander!" Maka gushed over her almost-little sister. "I missed you! You got taller!"

"Oh, come on," Kid muttered as they landed and Flander went immediately to hug Maka.

"Kid, you're seven minutes late," Blackstar said. He expected Kid to collapse to the ground sobbing, but Kid's reaction was totally rational.

"I was doing something with Flander," he replied. He'd been trying harder and harder lately to calm his symmetry OCD. It was all because of Flander; not even Liz or Patti could truly calm his soul.

"Of course," Patti muttered. "So busy practicing for your big night, are you?"

"What is she doing?" Kid thought in panic. "She'll blow it if she doesn't shut up."

"Huh?" Blackstar blinked, dumbfounded. "Practicing what?"

"Stop talking, Patti," Kid warned. "It's nothing important."

"It has to be important for you to forget our training," Patti contradicted. Kid shot her a glare. Why was she being so difficult?

"No, it isn't."

"I don't know, Kid," Soul said. "Patti's right; what could make you be late for something super important?"

"I can't help it," Kid defended himself. "Flander distracts me is all."

"Yeah, and that's all there is to it!" Patti shouted. Kid stared at her in disbelief.

"Whose side are you on anyway? Whatever, let's just get started; we've lost enough time as it is."

Tsubaki wordlessly transformed for Blackstar, Maka detached herself from gushing over Flander to hold Soul, and Sakutaro transformed into a multi-colored crescent-shaped scythe. Lastly, Liz and Patti transformed. Kid felt a slight sting in his left hand, where Patti was, but didn't think much of it.

"First," Maka prompted. "Kid, Blackstar, we're going to resonate first and stabilize it before reaching out to Flander. Flander, you and Sakutaro just standby for a while until we come to you, okay?"

"Got it," Flander nodded. Patti tried her best to ignore Flander while she could.

The four meisters began resonating with their weapons. Kid felt the stinging sensation increase to a burn and was annoyed. Only one of his hands was burning. They hadn't expected any problems with the technique they had almost perfected since their battle with Asura. Their souls would connect and they would push their limits. However, they didn't get that far this time. Just as Maka and Blackstar began reaching out to Kid, the entire thing exploded.

"Hey wait," Maka gasped as she regained her balance. "What was that?!"

Kid was confused. He turned to his weapons in annoyance. "Hey, what did I tell you girls about slacking off?"

"It wasn't me," Liz said.

"Then…" Kid didn't find words for his thoughts. Patti was always so easygoing. "Patti?"

Although she didn't like Kid yelling at her, Patti was glad she was finally getting some attention from him. "What?"

"You know what," Kid snapped. "Now cut it out. We don't have time for this."

"We have all night, what are you griping for?"

"I'm not in the mood to argue with you," Kid replied.

"I'm not the one picking a fight," Patti said passive-aggressively.

"You are too!"

"What's up with them?" Soul asked.

"I don't know," Maka replied. "But this doesn't look good."

"What's gotten into you?" Kid asked. "Why are you being like this? I came to training with you, what more do you want?"

Patti was silent. Kid began to feel as if they were losing connection. The burning sensation increased to an alarming high and Kid would have dropped her had she not transformed to her human body. Her arms were crossed and she was looking away from him childishly. Liz transformed as well, standing on the other side of the clearing with the others.

"Why are we training today?" Patti muttered finally.

"We're trying to teach Flander how do resonate with a group," Kid replied impatiently.

"Of course," Patti scoffed maliciously. "It's all about Flan, isn't it?"

"Why would you say something like that?" Kid demanded. "Now you're just being crazy. What's your problem lately? It's like you're losing your faith in me."

"I am," Patti admitted quietly. He was starting to see through her.

"Why?" Kid asked again. "What have I done to make this happen? Just tell me, Patti; I want to help."

"Everything you do is for Flander!" Patti shouted. "It's like you don't have any more time for us!"

"That's…." He'd been about to say 'that's not it,' but after a moment of thinking it through, it was true. He'd been so busy making sure Flander was taken care of that he'd been cancelling out the others. It wasn't like he catered to Flander's every want; he'd been constantly postponing fun things with Flan because of certain incidents. No one was getting what they wanted. Kid sighed and put his head down in defeat.

"You're right," he admitted. "I do a lot to make sure Flander's safe, yet even what I do isn't enough."

"Huh?" Patti looked up at him in shock.

"I know I've been really busy with Flander ever since she got here," Kid said. "And I know I go out of my way to protect her. But Patti, I want you to understand something." He looked up at her with determined golden eyes. "If you jumped off the roof, I would do the same for you."

Patti was silent again. She didn't know what to say. She'd been selfish, but understandably so, and she'd been wrong.

"Kid," she gasped. "If you had to choose between me and Flander… who would you choose?"

"I don't want to choose," Kid replied. "I would never choose between you or Flander or Liz. I couldn't. Because that's not what partners do."

He extended his hand and Patti took it, transforming as she did so. The metal was soft and cool to the touch, easing the pain in his burnt palm. Kid began panicking.

"Quick, Liz, transform!" he cried.

"What? Why?"

"Just do it," Kid choked out, foaming at the mouth from the asymmetry of the moment. Liz laughed and did what he said. Kid sighed in relief. "Now, shall we continue?"

"Yes!"

Only Flander was quiet. She stared at Kid and Patti from where she stood. No one could see the heartbroken expression on her face.

No one but Beatrice.


	14. Chapter 14

Kid glanced at his reflection one last time to make sure he was presentable. He was wearing a black tuxedo with a red tie; the red was a new thing this year. The guests would be arriving any minute now. Kid turned to his weapons, who were dressed in almost identical red garbs. Liz had bribed Flander into convincing him their skirt length didn't have to match this year. Of course, Kid couldn't say no to her.

"Flander," Kid called. "The guests will be arriving soon. Are you ready?"

"I'm not coming out of my room," Flander's squeaky reply came. Kid presented a puzzled face as he stepped toward her bedroom door.

"What do you mean?" he asked. "Is everything alright?"

"No," Flander mumbled. "The dress you bought me looks weird."

"I'm sure you look beautiful," Kid reassured her. "May I come in? Maybe I can help."

"Sure," Flander grumbled. Kid opened the door hesitantly. Flander was standing in front of the mirror with her cutest pouty face yet. Her dress was black with white ruffles and a red-laced corset-style bodice with fluffy sleeves; it had a Lolita feel to it, which is what she liked, with a red bow-tie. Knee-high white socks and red shoes. She looked absolutely adorable.

"Flan, you look cute," Kid smiled at her. "I'm sure everyone will love it."

"I don't want to look cute," she whined. "I'm just not sure about this whole thing."

Kid nodded to himself. This was a clear case of stage fright. He put a hand on her head and smiled.

"We practiced so hard," he reminded her. "Do you really want to waste that? Everyone will love you, I promise."

"I'm still not sure," the child countered quietly, turning away from him and blushing slightly. "Do you think Beato will like it?"

Kid sighed and straightened. Again with Beato. Beato wasn't real. Flander was almost thirteen years old. She needed to grow up. It may be too soon for this, but Kid didn't want to put things off. He also didn't want her to mess anything up if she got a lot of attention at the party. "Um… can I talk to you for a moment?"

"Kid! They're here!" Patti shouted.

"Stop yelling in the house!" Kid shouted back, stepping hastily towards the door. He'd talk to Flander later.

Performance of the Gods; A Shocking Delight for the Unsuspecting Guests?

"Soul, Soul, hurry!" Maka said impatiently, pulling her weapon partner to the gates of Gallows Manor. She was dressed in a cute Alice in Wonderland dress with striped stockings.

"Why are we even here?" Soul grumbled. 'and why'd you make me where this? It's not cool at all."

He was dressed in a waistcoat and spectacles. A small pocket watch was tucked into his coat pocket next to a white rose. He wasn't wearing any ears, thank god.

"You two look cute," Tsubaki chirped happily. She wasn't dressed as anything in particular; she was simply wearing a white dress with skull-pattern fishnets on her arms and legs. It was creepy, yet elegant as well. Blackstar was dressed in a sloppy black suit that complimented Tsubaki's attire.

"This party is gonna be awesome!" Blackstar yelled.

They walked up the steps to the grand mansion. The entire place was decorated with candles and streamers. A table of food was set up in each of the corners, and several people were already gathered there. The four met Flander, Kid, Liz, and Patti at the door.

"Hi, Kid," Tsubaki waved. "The red is new. It looks good."

"Thank you," Kid nodded in acknowledgement at her. Tsubaki noticed Flander was quiet. "You all look great. Maka, I think you're very cute in your—"

"Flander!" Maka screamed, hugging the said girl and swinging her in a circle.

Kid deadpanned. He slowly turned his head to face them. What's it take to get a little attention from this chick? He needed to talk to her!

"Hey, Kid," Soul greeted. "Sorry about her; I don't know what her problem is."

This didn't make Kid feel any better. It was obvious anyone who meets Kid wants to beat him up almost immediately, but anyone who came across Flander loved her instantly. They were complete opposites. It wasn't that fair. Besides that, Flander had a sort of endearing magic about her. Everyone wanted to make up for anything they did to cause her pain; in Maka's case, doubting her about Sakutaro. Now that Flander knows she doesn't have to keep hurting Sakutaro to keep him immortal, the entire thing was already behind them.

Kid tried keeping his worries to himself; they were all there to have fun. On the other hand, Flander was terrified. She'd never been in a place with so many people before.

"Flander, why don't you go meet some of the other people?' Kid suggested casually. If he could get her out of the main circle, maybe he'd get to talk to Maka without her being distracted.

"I… um…."

"Hmm? Is something wrong?"

Kid stared intently at his little sister for a moment. His face relaxed in a grin.

"Oh, I see how it is," he smoothed her hair. "No need to be nervous, Flan; I'm sure they'll all love you."

Flander took a fistful of his jacket. Kid realized this was going to be harder than anticipated, but he had a trick up his sleeve.

"Don't cling to me like that," he chided, still smirking. "You wouldn't want them to think you're cute, would you?"

Flander shivered and released him, dispersing aimlessly into the abyss of strangers. Maka stared after her with a long face for a moment, but soon turned back to Kid.

"So what's up lately?" she asked, suddenly focused. "Flander tried jumping off the roof again?"

Kid nodded. "It's because of this Beato person… I didn't think she was real at first, but I have my doubts now."

"You don't think it's anything dangerous, do you?" Maka considered. "Like a spirit or something?"

"I'm not sure. I haven't sensed anything, but it could be a rare form of Soul Protect. Have you seen her eyes?"

Maka nodded seriously. "Yeah. They're turning red."

Flander couldn't take it. She held on tightly to Sakutaro, lest she dropped him and he got trampled by someone's four-inch heels. She was grateful Kid let her skip out on that; she was too short and her feet were too small to make it possible to walk in high heels without falling over.

"This dress looks so silly," Flander thought to herself. She didn't like people seeing her in it. "It's too even. Kid even called me cute."

"Ah, Flan-chan!" Sakutaro squealed, flapping his arms and pointing in the direction of one of the tables. Flander looked up immediately and saw a flash of golden. Flander gasped and ran to the corner before anyone else noticed. Behind the table was a little black hat with a note attached to it. She picked up the note and read out loud.

"To Fran Doe. I'm sorry I couldn't be here on your big day; I have important matters to attend to. To atone for my absence, here's a little something to complete your beautiful outfit.

-Beato."

Flander picked up the hat and inspected it for a second. It was small, obviously more of a hairpiece, with red lace on the brim. After a moment, it floated through the air and landed delicately on her head, entwining into the left side of her hair. Flander smiled; it was perfect, and it brought out her stripes. She didn't feel quite so bad about wearing her dress now that she had something to compliment it.

"Flander," Kid called softly as he found her at last. "Come on; it's time."

Flander smiled and began following him behind the curtain of the stage. Kid began fiddling with her hat, trying to tilt it to the right. She swatted his hand away.

"Leave it alone," she said. "It brings out my stripes."

"Your asymmetrical stripes," Kid muttered. "Where'd that hairpiece come from?"

"Beato gave it to me," she replied.

"Flan, you can just tell me if a stranger gave it to you," he insisted. Flander blinked at him.

"I didn't. I got it from Beato." Kid sighed, frustrated.

"So is Beato real? Like really real? Can I see her and touch her if I wanted to?"

Flander looked down. The ultimate denial. "Um… only I can see her because I have special eyes."

"Special…" Kid trailed off as he looked into her once-golden eyes. They now took on a darker, more sinister red tint to them. "What happened to your eyes?"

"Beato made them—"

"Right," he cut her off. "Sakutaro, what happened?"

The lion didn't answer.

"Sakutaro? Come on, why are you ignoring me again? This isn't like you."

"I'd like to present a special performance tonight devoted to your entertainment," Lord Death announced from the other side of the curtain.

"Just do as we rehearsed," Kid coached her. "And don't do anything brash, okay? We'll talk about this afterwards."

"Deal," Flander said. Kid glanced at her once more, feeling bad for getting angry at her before their big recital. He reached over and patted her hair. She smiled mischievously at him.

"Nii-nii," she sang. Kid wordlessly smiled back; he really should think of a nickname for her. Their father called her 'Buttercup,' and Sakutaro called her 'Flan-chan' or 'Mistress,' so who was Kid to keep calling her 'Flan'?

"Do your best," was the best he could do.

Soul Eater

"I wonder what's going on," Soul thought as he watched the stage from the back of the crowd with the others. Lord Death had just finished announcing something special, but there were no hints as to what it could be. "Wouldn't Kid tell us about anything special?"

"Kid didn't say anything about anything special," Maka agreed.

"Where is Kid, anyway?" Blackstar asked.

"I don't know," Liz admitted. "He said he had to do something important."

"Flander's not here either," Tsubaki sighed.

"Too bad," Patti sighed. "They're missing out on the show."

"Um… I think they are the show," Soul said, pointing. Maka almost dropped her cake when she saw the curtain draw back. Kid was sitting at the piano, and Flander was standing quietly by a microphone. "I didn't know Kid played…." Soul listened for a minute as Kid began his piece. "He's pretty good."

"It's so beautiful, huh, sis?" Patti whispered in excitement.

"Why didn't he tell us?' Liz wondered out loud.

Kid didn't think about the many people watching him right now. He just focused on the notes. Just like they practiced. He let his slim fingers dance over the ivory in a slow, gentle pattern. He knew now why Soul liked to play so much. The sound and motion was relaxing, soothing, therapeutic even. Kid didn't care about symmetry; all he cared about was this perfect moment.

As for the sound, well… it captivated everyone in the room.

"I never knew he could play like that," Maka gasped. Even Blackstar was silent.

The music died down to a soft chord, and Flander took that as her cue.

_Tsuki ga nobori hajimeta koro mita sarete yuku karada nanairo hikaru tsubasa wa sotto iro wo kae tojite yuku..._

**The moon started to rise  
When the body passed away  
The seven colored shiny wings are  
Closed softly changing colors...**

The people in the audience gasped inaudibly at her voice. Her voice was soft, but powerful and mature, much more than they would expect from the underdeveloped tween. Her voice was like a chorus of angels, which could be expected from a Shinigami. No, being a reaper had nothing to do with her talent. This was a real thing.

_Nari hibiku tokei no hari ga yagate kokoro wo kowashite iku yo dakara somatta akai hitomi wo tojita mama ryoute de mimi wo fusaida tsuki ga kieru made  
_**  
Over time the clock is resounding  
It will break your heart  
So I lid your eyes tinged red  
Sealed ears with both hands  
Until the moon disappears**

_Zetsubou no umi wo oyogi kiru mae ni douka ikasete  
Unmei no ito wo tadotte yami wo mitsuketa  
_**  
Somehow let me go  
Before you can swim a sea of despair  
In this thread of fate  
I found darkness to follow**

There was a small instrumental break. Kid filled the silence with a beautiful, complicated melody. His precision was perfect.

_Michi naru sekai ni furete karada mo kokoro mo naku sunara_  
**  
If your body and soul loses touching the unknown world**

_toji teta tsubasa hiroge karei ni mai chiru kokoro ni hisomu yokubou somatta akai karada wo oouyou ni hikari wo kuguri hashiru no you ga akeru mae ni_

**Expanding wings dance  
In the scattered splendor  
Hiding the heart desires  
Before dawn, an anticipated light  
Runs and covers the red dyed body**

_tojikometa omoi noboru tsuki to tomo ni wasure yukuno jun hou kuchibiru nugutte yami ni modorou  
_  
**Feeling cramped,  
Can I forget in the die along with the rise of moon?  
I wiped his lips,  
Back to the darkness charm**

Kid took over again, closing his eyes as the amazing sound wrapped around him. He'd never thought he could create something like this. Flander felt as if she were flying. Her heart raced with the sound, and she could almost feel her wings escape the concealing sheath of her skin. Alas, she could control herself. This moment was perfect, and she didn't want to ruin it by scaring people.

_Zetsubou no umi wo oyogi kiru mae ni douka ikasete _

_Unmei no ito wo tadotte yami wo mitsuketa  
_  
**Somehow ****let me go****  
Before you can swim a sea of despair**

**In this thread of fate  
I found darkness to follow**

_tojikome ta omoi noboru tsuki to tomo ni wasure yukuno jun hou kuchibiru nugutte yami ni modorou...  
_  
**Feeling cramped,  
Can I forget in the die along with the rise of moon?  
His lips wiped,  
Back to the darkness charm...**

_nugutte yami ni modorou...  
_  
**wiped, back to the darkness charm...**

The audience was silent for another moment before erupting in applause. Kid stood up and moved to the center of the stage, and Flander took a couple steps away from the microphone and stood next to him. It was like the people couldn't get enough of them.

"Keep smiling, Flan," Kid whispered to him, winking. She grinned and winked back.

Kid bowed to his grateful audience, and Flander lowered herself in a graceful curtsy just like Kid taught her. The applause continued.

"That was so good!" Maka said.

"I know," Liz agreed, clapping her hands furiously. "Now I know what had them so distracted before."

The others continued to make opinions, but Soul was silent, staring at Flander. She seemed so unsure of herself. Without thinking, Soul took the white rose from his coat pocket and threw it directly at her. It landed in front of her feet. Flander took it hesitantly.

"Nii-nii, why did Soul throw this at me?" she asked, mistaking the gesture for a sign of displeasure. "I thought he'd like it. Do I suck?"

Kid tried not to laugh. "Of course he liked it. It's his way of showing it."

Flander fiddled with the rose for another moment before tucking it into the brim of her hat.


	15. Chapter 15

"What the hell was that?" Kid demanded, walking straight up to Soul as soon as he got off the stage. Flander was nowhere in sight, so Kid was free to inquire as he pleased about the rose.

"Dude, chill, it's just a rose," Soul said immediately, putting his hands up defensively. Although the young scythe was growing exceedingly attracted to the reaper, he didn't intend for his gesture to mean anything special. "I had to give her something."

"You better not start with her," Kid tried to sound threatening, but Soul could clearly tell he was panicking.

"Relax, Kid," Soul said, putting an arm around Kid's shoulders. "You don't need to worry about her so much. If any boy gets a hold of her, she'd probably kill them."

Kid shuddered as he considered this. Soul was right.

Romantic Halloween Bash from Hell; A Gift Gone Too Far?

Flander gazed out at the dance floor as many couples made their way in circles. She'd never learned how to dance; Kid subconsciously found it useless to teach her since she would most likely be rendered partner less. She looked down at her red shoes.

"Want to dance?" a voice asked her.

She looked up. A boy she'd never seen before with blonde hair and blue eyes was standing in front of her. He wasn't wearing a costume, nor was he very dressed up; he simply wore a white tuxedo. It was obviously none other than Hiro. She blushed as she stared at his waiting hand. Thankfully, someone interrupted them before she had a chance to accept. Or decline.

"So you're Kid's sister, huh?" a boy asked.

"Yeah, I guess," she whispered timidly. This boy was Ox Ford. She recognized him from what Maka told her of their rivalry.

"When are you coming to school? You look old enough, but I've only seen you that one time that Kid brought you," this girl must be Jacqueline.

"I didn't know I was going to go," Flander said, raising her head and tilting it in confusion.

"She's so shy; it's adorable!" a girl gushed. This is Kim judging by her green eyes and short pink hair. "Kid should bring her more often!"

"So you're all alone here, huh?"

"No," Flander held up her stuffed lion. "Sakutaro, say hi."

"Hello," Sakutaro mumbled in a shy, squeaky voice. It had been a while since he talked to normal people.

"Hey, it talked," Ox said, his face blank with confusion.

"Of course he does," Flander laughed. She tried not to brag about her magic; she'd never interacted with mere humans besides her close circle of friends. "He's also a part of me. If I deny him, he dies."

"You created him with your own reaping magic?" Kim clarified. "I heard rumors about you. You're the talk of the DWMA, you know."

"I am?" Flander blinked and looked at Sakutaro. "Then I'd better keep things interesting, huh?"

Interesting indeed.

Soul Eater

A scream echoed throughout the room and everyone fled to the source. It had come from the other ballroom that remained unused due to its age. Kid was one of the first ones there, taking in the horrific sight that was in the room. On the far wall, the corpse of a student was hanging by a stake in his chest. His body was pinned in what seemed to be a circle of blood. The red liquid decoratively ran in unordinary directions, forming a cursed witch's circle. The blood ran to the foot of the symbol and spelled out one sentence.

"Happy Halloween, Flander! From Beatrice!"

"Liz!" Kid reached for the said weapon, wrapping one arm firmly around her waist and covering her eyes. "Don't look."

It was too late. Liz was quaking with fear.

"Kid," she whispered feebly. "Can I leave?"

"Yeah," Kid turned her in the direction of the door—away from the body. "Get Patti out of here too. We can handle this."

"Kid," Lord Death spoke seriously. "Where's Flander?"

Kid tore his eyes away from the wall and began searching through the handful of people for his sister. He was surprised to see her at the head of the swarm, staring up at the wall. He couldn't see her face, but he expected her to be screaming and crying any minute. He rushed toward her, eager to get her upstairs and out of sight before any of the students saw her like that.

"Hey, Flan," he said, reaching out to grip her shoulder. "It's going to be okay. Just come with me and the others will take care of it."

He moved so he could see her face. He'd anticipated her eyes to be wide and her hands to be trembling. She'd drop Sakutaro. She'd turn to Kid with teary eyes and ask what was wrong. However, that didn't happen. Her eyes were wide, but her face was alight with a gleeful grin. It was almost creepy. Suddenly, she began clapping her hands.

"Well played, Beato!" she cheered. "This is the best gift ever!"

Kid took an involuntary step back, his face twisted in dread. It was his hands that were trembling. No, this couldn't be. Flander couldn't be serious. This was a joke; a sick prank.

"F-Flander," Kid stammered, his voice almost lost with shock. "Who exactly is Beato?"

Flander laughed and turned to him, her red eyes blazing. "Did I not tell you? Beato is my best friend. She is the Golden Witch, Beatrice!"

Everyone left in the room gasped. The students were already evacuated.

"What is she saying?" Maka thought in panic.

"Flander is happy now!" Flander continued. "Beatrice drew the Seventh Pentacle of the Sun just for me!"

"Seventh… Pentacle… what?"

"Uu! It's used to create a release from bondage."

"Flander, how do you know this?" Kid demanded. He was almost disgusted that his own sister knew such sinister arts.

"Beato taught me all the patterns," Flander explained excitedly. "If there's one thing I'm good at, it's making patterns!"

"That's disgusting!" Kid disagreed. "Don't you know better than to make friends with witches?"

"I don't know what you mean, Kid," Flander said harmlessly, as if she honestly had no idea that witches were bad.

"Why are you so socially inept?"

"Uu—I am not!"

"Yes, you are!"

"I'm not, I'm not, I'm not, I'm not!"

Lord Death found their arguing a good enough reason to snap out of his stunned reverie. He chopped them both on the head. They broke away from each other immediately, gripping their skulls in pain.

"Stop fighting, you two," he said sternly. "Flander, where is Beatrice?"

"Uu…" Flander didn't want to say. She wanted to protect her friend. "Why can't you all just leave her alone? She won't do any harm."

"The hell she won't!" Kid was furious now. "She has endangered everyone at the academy. Don't you understand? This is bad, Flander."

"But… why?" Flander asked innocently. Kid sighed, calming himself.

"Because…" he tried to keep his voice level. "Witches don't really like reapers. Do you remember what happened with Medusa? It's the same for all witches."

No, it wasn't, but Flander didn't want to argue. She was too confused.

"I… I'm sorry, Kid," she whispered. She looked up once more at the Seventh Pentacle of the Sun, as if to will it to allow her to break her bond to the other grim reapers and live amongst witches.

Beatrice would appear to be floating in midair of a dark space. She was dwelling within the void of time and space itself; it's where she stayed since neither the witch society nor the human society accepted her. She summoned her Empty Mirror; the mirror that was a blank shard of this time and space she dwelt in. The surface of the glass blazed a bright gold before fading away to reveal the spirit of Medusa from where ever she was now.

"Beatrice?" Medusa seemed surprised to see her old schoolmate. "I haven't seen you around often."

"Medusa, I need your help," Beatrice interjected, pouting slightly. "I have Lord Death's daughter on a golden hook and I don't know what to do."

Medusa blinked. "You've got my attention, be grateful."

"You're the most evil witch I know, apart from your sister," Beatrice sighed. "Always burning frogs and doing the like for the sake of science. So now what do I do with her?"

"I've been curious as to see how Black Blood affects grim reapers."

"I don't have any black blood."

"Then why don't you blackmail the Reaper into giving you the school or even the city?"

"Not interested in the real world."

"Look, do you want my help or not?"

"Why are you so ego-maniacal?" Beatrice asked with an exasperated tone. "I'm a witch. I can do much greater things with my magic alone."

"Then why are you wasting your time on Flander?" Medusa sneered resentfully. She'd always been jealous of Beatrice's seemingly endless power.

"I just don't feel like that's what magic is for," Beatrice replied quietly. "I'm a witch ostracized by everything for my power. I'm on a quest to see what magic is truly for, and now Flander accepts me. She knows the answer."

Medusa scoffed. "Such a noble witch. Cocky. I could easily get to Flander now."

"Come near her," Beatrice warned. "And I'll make you face a fate worse than hell."

**Dun dun DUN! No, it's not time for that yet…. I'm back from my epic family vacation, and I got a bunch written down on paper. What do you think Beato was trying to do when she drew the circle? Will Flander stay true to her family? What's gonna happen, I wonder? I wonder?**

** By the way, was that pattern thing a sea of references or what?! :D**

"I can't believe you're friends with a witch," Kid said. You disgust me."

"Uu! I love you too Kid!"

"Why do you keep doing that?"

"Doing what, Kid?"

"Stop making that creepy noise. Honestly, I don't know what's gotten into you lately."

Flander laughed.

"And that's another thing," Kid snapped. "That laugh is too creepy. Why can't you be all sweet and innocent? Why do you have to kill everyone?"

"Uu! It's just a game, Kid!"

"I'll deal with you later," Kid muttered.

"On the next episode of Soul Eater," Sakutaro announced. "Flander's Magic Secret; A Creepy Game for All?"


	16. Chapter 16

Sunday morning was a catastrophe.

Flander walked down the stairs in a worse mood than usual. She didn't sleep well, and she was still puzzled about the night before. It didn't make her feel any better that Kid didn't have any responsiveness toward her. He was sitting at the table, stirring his coffee frantically, his nose buried in a book. He'd been up all night researching about these magic circles. Flander cleared her throat loudly.

No answer.

"A-hem!" Flander cleared her throat again. "Kid, pay attention to me."

No. Freaking. Answer.

"Kid? Kid!" she sang. "Kidkidkidkidkidkidkidkidkidkidkidkidkidkidkidkidk id~KIIIIID!"

"Kid, I brought you some more coffee!" Patti chirped, setting three more overflowing mugs down on the table. Kid looked up, a little surprised, but was grateful for her efforts.

"Thanks, Patti."

Flander clenched her fists. It burned her up inside to see him paying attention to Patti of all people whilst ignoring her.

"KID!" she barked. Kid looked up as if he hadn't seen her there. He smiled half-heartedly at her.

"Looks like you finally got up," he noted. Flander didn't reply; she just pouted at him. Kid dropped the charade; he wasn't in the mood. "What is it?"

"You weren't paying attention," she chastised. Kid set his coffee down.

"Stop pestering me, please. I'm really busy today. Just go to your room or something."

"Uu! You're always busy!" Flander whined. "You've been promising to do stuff with me all week. If you let me play with Beato, I wouldn't bother you so much, uu!"

"Will you stop making that noise?" Kid demanded. "It's creepy! Why can't you just do what I say for a change?"

Flander flinched as if she'd been hit. Her attitude changed to one of fear as she bolted out the back door. Kid was puzzled by her odd behavior.

"Flander, wait!"

Flander's Magic Secret; A Creepy Game for All?

Kid stared after his sister for a moment in disbelief. What was wrong with her? Flander headed outside into the garden. Beatrice was waiting for her.

"So the cats out of the bag, huh?" Beatrice asked as Flander nimbly balanced herself on the edge of a low stone wall. Flander wordlessly nodded. "I guess there's no point in my soul protect, then."

"Why is he so mad all the time?" Flander asked. "He's turning out to be just like mom. Never there. Always angry. It's only a matter of time before I get hurt again."

"I see," Beatrice agreed. She sighed. "I feel wretched about this whole thing. I should have put the gift in your room or somewhere that they wouldn't see it."

Kid sighed as he readjusted the painting in the hallway for the third time. Flander did this a lot when she was upset. She'd move everything. EVERYTHING! He'd have to have a talk with her later.

Kid took a break from the tedious rearranging and glanced out the window. Flander was dancing on the edge of a stone wall. Kid was relieved that she was alone and turned back to the portrait. After a moment, he felt as if he should turn back. It was just a nagging feeling in his bones that compelled him to look out the window again. His heart almost stopped. She wasn't alone anymore.

He ran outside. Whoever was trespassing had better have a good reason. And didn't Flander know better than to talk to strangers? Correction: no, she did not.

"Who do you think you are?" he demanded as he stormed towards the two.

"I should ask you the same thing."

At the cold voice, Kid stopped in his tracks. He kicked himself mentally for walking in so blindly. He should have paid attention before confronting a witch. He felt a stab of fear, but keep his ground a few feet away from them. Beatrice stood behind Flander like a shadow. Flander smiled; she was pleased her two favorite people were meeting face to face.

"You!" Kid started.

"Why don't you tell Kid our little secret, Fran Doe?" Beatrice smirked.

"Uu-uu," Flander laughed.

"What are you talking about?" Kid inquired.

"You have three more days, young reaper," Beatrice warned darkly, pointing a long, skinny finger at him. She cackled once before evaporating in a cloud of exploding butterflies. Kid didn't sense her anymore. Flander's eyes seemed to return to normal as well.

"Flander," Kid's voice was cold and disproving. "Why? Why can't you do as I say?"

_**WHY CAN'T YOU DO AS I SAY?**_

_** YOU BAD GIRL.**_

Flander took a hesitant step back, putting a hand over her mouth. What was going on? She hadn't felt this fear since Kid found Flander in the infirmary. It was the fear of pain. The fear of getting hurt.

Kid sensed the change in her attitude. "Uh, Flander?"

"I-I'm sorry," she stuttered. "I'm really sorry, Kid. Please don't hurt me."

"Hurt you—?" Kid's fury disappeared immediately. "Flander, what's gotten into you? You know that I would never…."

"Nine little children playing a game…" Flander whispered. "One hit the other and then there were eight."

"Stop it!"

Flander laughed, looking up at him with unfathomable eyes. Two metal wings tore out of the skin of her back, flinging blood across the bed off white roses behind her. Kid stared at her in shock.

"What are those things?!"

Soul Eater

Kid, Liz, Patti, Lord Death, Spirit, and Stein had all gathered in the Death Room. Flander was in the infirmary with Naigus, preparing for surgery. Stein would operate soon. Lord Death decided to have the wings surgically removed.

"Those wings weren't just wings, you know," Lord Death informed them. "They're magic weapons used for reaping souls."

"She's been trying to fly with them," Kid added. "I feel like such a fool. She's going to be really upset when they're gone." He turned to his weapons. "Patti, will you go check on her, please?"

"Sure thing, Kid!" Patti nodded and skipped away.

There was silence. Kid was debating whether to tell his father of the incident with Flander and his assumption of Flander being abused before, but he didn't get a chance to before the mirror began to glow. The static cleared to reveal the infirmary—why didn't Patti just come back to the Death Room to report in? Something wasn't right. A shrill scream cut through the room. Liz stiffened; she recognized that sound.

Flander was standing in the corner, her wings still intact. Blood covered the floor and the walls. Naigus was unconscious in the opposite corner, and there was another figure on the bed. Liz and Kid prayed it was a random student in the infirmary at the wrong time.

"Flander?" Kid gasped. "What's going on?"

"Bloody organs, tasty delight, well, why don't you come play with me?"

"What is she singing?"

"Little bird escaped from its cage, and now its wings are torn clean off."

They didn't hesitate to run to the infirmary. Kid and Liz were the first ones there, driven by fear and dread of what had happened. They didn't see Patti on their way there. Their fears were confirmed when they burst into the bloody room. Patti was lying on the bed in a pool of blood, her sky blue eyes misty and blank.

"Oh no—Patti!" Liz screamed, running towards the bed. She held her sister's cold shoulder. "Patti!" she looked up at Flander. "What did you do?" she sobbed. Flander only stood there, her hair concealing her face. Liz didn't want to deal with her now. She turned back to Patti's limp body and began sobbing all over again.

Kid walked up to the bed slowly, his hands shaking. Was this real? One of his weapons was gone? He would no longer have total symmetry when he fought? He couldn't handle that. It wasn't just the imbalance of it that made him upset; Patti was dead? Would he really never hear her laugh again? No, this can't be happening. It can't be. Can it?

"Patti?" Kid whispered, standing next to the bed. He reached a hand forward tentatively and touched her other shoulder. "Come on. You…" he sniffled, biting tears blurring his vision. "You have to wake up. We have to go home."

There was no reply. Kid sank to his knees slowly. She _was_ dead. His head fell forward on the bed. He held her close, sniveling into the soft fabric of her jacket.

"Patti!" he wailed. "Come back. Don't die! This isn't fair!"

He continued screaming until he felt someone trying to pull him away. He struggled relentlessly.

"No! I won't leave her!"

The hands retracted, releasing him. Kid looked back to see Spirit stepping away from him. Kid moved his gaze to look pleadingly at his father. Begging him to bring her back. Lord Death stood beside Kid and put a hand on his shoulder.

"She's gone, Kiddo." His soft words pierced Kid like a dagger. "I'm sorry."

Kid's eyes rippled with fresh tears. He pulled away from his dead partner and collapsed into his father, crying. He could vaguely feel someone picking him up and carrying him away, but then everything went black.

**Poor Kid! :'( How could Beatrice do something like this? All at a later time, my pretties. Read on and review!**


	17. Chapter 17

Spirit and Stein stared in horror at the two corpses then at the magic pattern on the wall. Flander was still singing, swaying back and forth on her heels.

"Hey you!" Spirit yelled. Flander stopped singing and rocking immediately, turning her head halfway to look at him. "What's the meaning of this? What happened?"

"I only did what Beato told me," Flander replied with a psychotic smile. The other two tensed. Flander turned around to face them. They saw Sakutaro was still dangling from her left hand.

"She was here?" Stein confirmed. Flander nodded.

"She waited until Patti was here, then she came in. She pointed to the corner and said 'Sing me a pretty song.' I did as she said. Even when the others started screaming, I did as she said. Was I a good girl? Huh, was I?"

No one knew what to say.

Flander's Remorse; Whose Tears Shed in Vain?

Liz sat on her bed, staring blankly at her dark purple quilt. She'd stopped crying a while ago; now all she could do was think about what happened over and over again. She thought about her life before she met Kid. She'd just lived on the streets, no friends or parents…. All she had was Patti. The twins had thrived together seemingly as one entity, but now she was gone. Liz hated the fear and the guilt of never saying a petty goodbye or even how much she loved her sister.

Liz looked up from her violet comforter, snapped out of her trance by a knock on her door. Kid had already walked through the open door, and was now standing at the foot of her bed.

"I came to see how you were doing," he explained quietly. His voice was strange. "You didn't eat any dinner, and I know… I know this is hard for you… and I just…."

"Kid, are you okay?" Liz asked. Although the boy had his head down, she saw a thin stream of tears running down his face. He moved like a shadow, suddenly taking the few steps to close the distance between them. He bound her in a tight hug; Liz stood still, frozen in shock. They'd never been this close before.

"I'm sorry, Liz," he apologized. "I'm so sorry."

Liz closed her eyes and returned the embrace, pulling him down to sit on the bed beside her. He was crying softly into her shoulder.

"I-I miss her," he choked. He could never forget the cheerful, tough, childish, loving weapon. Something about her had etched itself permanently into his soul, like a name carved into the bark of a tree.

They sat there for what felt like a long time before another person joined their mourning circle. They looked up to see Flander holding Sakutaro to her chest. Kid wiped his eyes and straightened.

"What is it?" he asked kindly.

"Nii-nii?" she whimpered, tears brimming over her wide yellow eyes. "Can I stay with you tonight?"

"Oh, Flan, honey," Kid murmured, coiling an arm around her as she sat down beside them. Liz didn't object, and instead slithered an arm around Flander as well.

"I didn't know Beato would do something like that," she cried. "I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault," Kid soothed her, rubbing her hair softly. Liz nodded in agreement with his statement. Flander sighed, a little calmer now.

"I know what it's like to lose a sister," she said. Kid raised his head attentively, his misery beat out by curiosity. They had a sister too? He'd have to have a talk with his father later.

"You had a sister?" Liz seemed just as interested as Kid.

"Yeah," Flander nodded, leaning back to rest her head on Kid's shoulder. "Not a real sister like Kid, but she still felt like it."

Kid was vaguely relieved to hear this. He looked at Liz, silently questioning whether to press the subject or let Flander keep it to herself. Eventually, they came to the decision that Flander was the kind of girl who needed to talk about her problems if they ever were to be resolved.

"What happened to her?" Liz asked.

"Her name was Remilla," Flander began. "She was beautiful, kind, amazing…. She would bring me food and play with me. She brought books and games. We played good games like dolls and reenacting Hamlet."

Kid winced.

"And she brought me Lævateinn, my first weapon," Flander told them. "One day… mom got really, really mad at me. She took me and Lævateinn outside to really big mountains. She took us to a volcano and threw us in."

"What?!" Liz gasped.

"Rem… Rem…" Flander bit her lip. "Remilla caught me—only me. She and Lævateinn had to work together to get me out. They both died in there, and I got to live. I-I hate myself for that! They're dead and it's all my fault!"

She buried her face in her hands, sobbing. Liz held her close in sympathy. They were in the same boat now. Kid held them both silently. He needed to be strong for both of them now.

"Remilla got to save me," Flander whispered. "But Patti died in vain. There will be none."

Soul Eater

"I should get Flander to bed," Kid said, glancing at the clock. It was almost midnight already. He was amazed at how much had happened in one day. He got to his feet and led Flander to the door. He glanced back at Liz. "Tell me if you need anything, okay?"

"Thanks, Kid," Liz nodded, crawling beneath her covers. She felt a bit better now.

Kid took Flander to his room. He'd been wary at first about sleeping with a girl, but then he remembered it was just his sister. Besides, there had been times that Patti had been scared at night and snuck into his room to sleep. Kid tucked Flander in and she fell asleep almost instantly. Once Kid was finally able to close his eyes, he was drowned in a colorful dream. He was in a field. A familiar laugh sounded beside him. He looked up from where he was kneeling on the ground.

"I like giraffes!"

"Patti?"

"Why are you so sad, Kid?" the weapon sang, bending down to pat his back.

"It's not symmetrical anymore," he said. "There's only one, it's not symmetrical at all."

"Idiot," Patti laughed. "That's the least of your worries now."

"What?"

They were suddenly miles away from each other, Patti on one side of the field and Kid on the other. Kid stared at her face intently. She was crying.

"Patti?" his voice sounded so far away. She turned away from him and began walking. Kid ran after her. "Patti!"

His feet burned. He realized he was running on a turf of hot coals. He looked around to see he was in the center of a volcano. In the next second, he was engulfed in flame.

Kid shot upright in bed, bathed in sweat. He looked desperately around the room as he slowly remembered where he was. Flander was still peacefully asleep beside him. He smiled and lied down again, putting a hand in her hair softly. She looked a lot like Patti when she slept. He felt another torrent of tears wash down his face as he pulled her close.

"Kid?" a small voice squeaked.

"Huh—Patti?" Kid sat up halfway, awakening from his deep sleep. He was used to living alone, and although he was willing to cook extra meals for his new partners, being woken up was not on the agenda.

"What are you doing in here?" Kid asked, a little irritable for being roused in the middle of the night. "It's late. What's so important that you had to wake me up?"

"I-I'm sorry," Patti cringed. Kid stopped ranting immediately. Patti seemed sweet and somewhat scary at times, but he knew she wasn't one to just cringe. He'd never seen her look so scared before. He realized his fault and mentally chided himself for speaking so harshly to her. He gently took her hand and pulled her down on the chair beside the bed.

"Come on," he encouraged in a softer tone. "It's not like you to disturb me. Did something happen?"

"I had a nightmare," she whispered. Kid didn't understand why she didn't just talk to Liz about it. "You left us on a mission. You said you didn't need us."

She was close to tears now. Kid put a hand on her head in a friendly way.

"You shouldn't dream things like that," he said. "That's not true. I would never leave you two, you understand?"

He hugged her gently. Patti wiped her eyes and smiled faintly at him.

"Can I stay with you tonight?" she asked. She was so cute that Kid felt bad for declining.

"I have to maintain symmetry, Patti," he stated. "If you slept on one side of the bed, my symmetry would be off."

"Well… we could cuddle in the middle."

"C-cuddle?" Kid felt a warm liquid trickle from his nose. Embarrassed, he flicked the blood away with his finger before she could notice. "Um…" he glanced at her pleading face before averting his gaze. "Yeah, fine. Get in."

Patti slipped under the sheets next to him, pressing her body close to his. She fell asleep almost immediately. Kid relaxed and smiled at her. She was so cute when she slept.

Kid opened his eyes, breaking away from the flashback. It wasn't Patti in his arms; it was Flander. Patti was gone now.

**Awww. :'( Poor Liz and Kid. Poor Flander and Remilla (how's THAT for an Easter Egg?) What will Kid do with only one weapon? Sorry if there are more grammar mistakes than usual; my shift keys are a bit broken. Good old Autocorrect helps a bunch, though!**

"I can't believe you didn't take my advice," Medusa grumbled at Beatrice.

"Thanks, but no thanks," Beatrice replied. "I thought of something much better to do now."

Medusa laughed. "I can't believe you're trying to—"

"Shh! Don't spoil it!"

"Whatever," Medusa rolled her eyes. "But what kind of ritual is that anyway? You're just killing everyone in a pattern. Don't you think someone will notice?"

"Sakutaro—the next episode!"

"Why does he get to say all the episodes?!"

"He doesn't get any other lines since he's refraining from talking to everyone in the story," Beatrice explained.

"Why?"

"It's a secret."

"I hate you."

"Next time on Soul Eater," Sakutaro recited. "The Third Night; Liz Braves the Witch's Ritual? Read it, or Flander will come after you and eat your toes!"

"I will not! I'll at least cook them first, geez."


	18. Chapter 18

"Liz," Kid awoke his remaining partner gently the next morning. "I'm going to school now. Do you want to stay home today?"

"Yes, please," Liz whispered, raising her head above the covers. She looked terrible. Kid put a hand on her flushed face, relieved when he didn't feel any signs of a fever yet.

"Don't get sick," he ordered. "Just take it easy, okay?"

"Okay," she disappeared beneath the covers again. Kid paused before leaving.

"The… the funeral's this evening."

Liz stiffened. "I'll be ready when you get home. Thanks, Kid."

The Third Night; Liz Braves the Witch's Ritual?

At least he still had her. Kid walked to school alone. He really just wanted to stay home and mourn over the loss of Patti then go to the funeral and mourn some more, but alas, he knew he had to keep a perfect attendance record. He went straight to class and sat down without so much as acknowledging anyone else.

"Hey, Kid," Maka sang as she sat down next to him. Her expression changed when she saw his face. "Is something wrong?"

Kid lowered his face so she couldn't see his expression. Apparently no one knew about the incident yet.

"Where are Liz and Patti?" she asked, looking around.

"Liz is at home," Kid replied quickly. Maka tilted her head, confused. Kid took a deep breath and looked at her. His eyes were red as if he'd been crying. Maka was instantly concerned. "Patti… she's…."

"Okay," Liz said, putting on her reading glasses. She was standing in the large library of the mansion. She had to do a lot of research today; she wanted to investigate the murders. Something about it didn't seem random to her. Whatever it was, she was going to uncover the truth about Beatrice and Flander. She had to for Patti's sake. Why was Flander doing this? Did it have to do with Remilla? Liz noticed that one of her fingernails was chipped.

"What a pain," she thought. She shook her head and put her hand down. This was no time to get distracted. She had to do this for Patti's sake. She began searching the bookshelves. "Something about witches… something about curses… something about…."

Her thin hand paused on the spine of a book. _Ten Little Soldiers_? She thought about what she knew of the book and what Flander said the night before.

"There will be none."

_And there were none._

Liz hurriedly pulled the book from the shelf and grabbed a couple more before heading to the desk. She set the books down and stopped. It was strange, but Kid had left a brown portfolio folder scattered asymmetrically on the desk. He usually kept the room in spotless order; why was this here? He was probably too tired and shaken up the other day to put it away. She picked up the folder and read the label.

"The case of Beato the Golden," Liz sneered bitterly. She flipped the cover back and looked inside at the pictures. She felt kind of bad for taking it without asking, but it was only borrowing it and she needed this information. With that, she began her research.

"What?! She's dead?!" Maka gasped in shock. Kid nodded.

"It was Beatrice again," he explained, heaving a sigh. "I guess she was angry that we tried taking away Flander's wings and then the incident happened."

"Naigus is gone too, huh?" Soul asked. "That witch."

"What wings?" Blackstar asked.

Kid sighed again. So much had happened that he never got a chance to explain any of it to his friends. He didn't want to talk about it now; he was still in too much shock.

"Why couldn't I realize something was wrong before it happened?" Kid asked himself. "Why couldn't I save her? Now it's too late."

"Don't beat yourself up about this," Maka said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "It's gone too far now. We need to act. We can't let this continue."

"Right," Kid nodded. "We need to stop Beatrice somehow."

"That's easy, just find where she is and kill her," Soul said nonchalantly. "Piece of cake."

"No, we need to find out why she's doing this," Kid disagreed. "I don't have any tolerance for what she's done, but I know to execute proper judgment, we must truly find her sin."

"Right," Maka nodded. "Now let's think. Why would Beatrice do something like this?"

Soul Eater

"It's a ritual!" Liz exclaimed after hours of studying. She'd noticed a pattern in the murders. On the first night, one died, on the second night, two died. Three people were going to die tonight. She wasn't one hundred percent sure, but she knew it had to do with the old witch story about ten little soldiers. She had to tell Lord Death immediately.

She ran out to the hallway and turned to the mirror. She frantically began smudging the numbers on the fogged surface.

"42-42-56—"

She cut herself off with a scream as the mirror shattered underneath her fingers. She stared at the jagged fragments of glass at her feet. That was her only hope. She stiffened. This could only mean one thing.

"Beatrice—she's here," she whispered, turning around. She saw the Golden Witch herself standing behind Flander. Beatrice smirked.

"Aren't you smart?" she sneered. "Finding out my little game."

"Why are you doing this?" Liz tried to keep her voice level, but her fear of creepy things was getting to her.

"It wouldn't matter if I told you," Beatrice waved a hand. "I can't have you ruining Flander's game, now can I?"

"What do you mean? What do you plan to do to me?"

Beatrice laughed once, narrowing her golden red eyes. "Kill you."

Liz let out a squeak as she shifted her gaze to Flander.

"Flander, please!" she begged. "I won't tell anyone, I swear! Just stop her."

"She's not going to do anything to you," Flander said almost reassuringly. Liz sighed. Flander laughed. "I am."

Liz's eyes widened and before she knew it she was flung against the opposite wall. She let out a small cry of pain and shock as she slid to the floor. She gripped the back of her head in pain. She was definitely going to have a concussion. She looked at her attacker with fearful eyes.

"You wouldn't," she gasped. "How could you do this to us? To Kid?!"

"Can't let you live," Flander explained monotonously. "You'll spoil my fun."

"You witch!" Liz screamed, pointing at the child. "It was you all along! You killed them all! You lied!"

"And you lied too!" Flander was suddenly filled with rage. "You said you understood. You said you loved me. You even called me cute, but you always thought I was a spoiled brat who took all Kid's attention."

"No, I didn't!" Liz gasped, appalled she would think such things.

"Liar!" Flander snapped, raising her hand and clenching her hand into a fist. The motion sent a wave of inhuman energy across the room. Liz grimaced as an invisible hand began crushing her throat. After a moment, her body went limp. Flander frowned.

"She's already dead," she pouted. "I want her to suffer more for the pain she's caused us."

"I'll revive her," Beatrice said. "But I can only do so twice. There may only be three deaths tonight; no more, no less."

Flander nodded and Beatrice did as she promised. All the injuries on Liz's body disappeared and she awoke, coughing violently.

"Patti got in the way too," Flander continued. "She took up all of Kid's time. He never had enough time to watch me. So of course, I had to take care of her too."

"Shut up!" Liz screamed.

"Only once for her," Flander replied, waving her hand sharply. Liz flinched as her arm was extended straight out against her will. "She didn't hurt me. She only offended me. You really hurt me."

Liz's arm started bending out of place, cracking in several places as the bones were broken. She screamed in pain.

"I want you to suffer for that!" Flander screamed. "Die! Die!"

Liz screamed again as her other arm broke into a million pieces.

"Why are you doing this?!" she choked between cries.

"Why?!" Flander waved her other hand. The gesture sent a bone-crushing blow to Liz's ribcage. "You'll never know why! No one ever cares about what I truly want!"

Flander stared in frustration at the limp body of her victim. "Beato!"

Beatrice sighed, repeating the revival spell.

"What is it you want then?" Liz demanded as she woke up again. Tears were rolling down her cheeks. "Flander, tell me! No one will ever know if you only think it!"

Flander hesitated, the silver stake in her hand growing cold.

"Do you think we'd laugh?" Liz continued. "Do you think you're selfish for wanting it? Do you think we'd hate you if we knew? Flander, that's not what we're like! We want to help you. We all really, really love you. Why can't you see that?"

"Stop talking," Flander whispered, trembling. "You're not even half the sister Remilla was."

"What about Maka? And Kid? Flan, I know you're unhappy, but you can't do this to us!"

Flander thought about it for a minute, her expression growing dark. She shot the dagger forward.

"I want my family!" she snarled.

**And then Liz was gone. Poor Kiddo :( What will he do now? More importantly… what will he do to Flander when he finds out?**


	19. Chapter 19

**This chapter has been altered for the sake of the plot.**

"Flan, Liz, I'm home," Kid called. He wasn't surprised that Flander ran straight into his arms. He smiled fondly at her and ran his fingers through her soft hair. "Hey, Flan. I know you missed me, but I'm home now."

She didn't say anything. She just clung to his jacket. Kid was confused.

"Flander?"

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

"Sorry for what?" he asked. "What's going on?"

"I'm really sorry," she repeated. Kid pulled her away, putting a hand under her chin and forcing her to look at him.

"Flander, talk to me. Where's Liz?"

"I'm so sorry," she cried. "I'm really sorry, Nii-nii!"

"You're scaring me, what's happened?!"

"Forgive me," she whispered. "There were supposed to be six, but I only made it four. I messed up."

Kid's face changed drastically as he pushed her aside and ran upstairs. He was looking for Liz, calling her name repeatedly as he did so. He had to find her and make sure she was alright. However, he already knew the truth. He'd been suspecting the ritual for some time today as he researched it with Maka.

He found Liz in a pool of her own blood, dead.

"Liz!" he screamed, kneeling beside her and pulling her body up to his face. "No, Liz! No, no, no! This can't be happening! Please, Liz!"

He looked up to see Flander standing at the edge of the stairs. It took all of his self-control to not push her down.

"What happened? What did you do?!"

"You don't have long now," she spoke. It wasn't her voice speaking, but Beatrice's. "The Four nights are upon you. In the land of the dead, there were none, someone was a gift and then there was one. Two took it away and then there were three. One died thrice and then there were four." Flander let out a laugh. "There will only be eight bodies now, isn't that great?!"

The Funeral of Two; Will Kid Accept Their Fate?

Few people knew of the tragedies that had happened, so there weren't many people at the funeral the next day. It had been postponed so Liz and Patti could double. It's what they would have wanted. Maka, Soul, Blackstar, Tsubaki, Kid, Flander, and Crona all stood in a tight circle around the two graves. The ground was covered in a symmetrical arrangement of flowers. Kid could care less about the symmetry right now. He wasn't crying; he refused to look so weak in front of his friends. He wanted them to think he would be okay. As of now, his face was unreadable. It got late; the others began going home one by one.

"Kid," Maka said as she and Soul were leaving. "Tell us if you need anything, okay?"

Kid nodded. "Thank you, Maka."

Kid felt someone stand next to him.

"Nii-nii?" Flander whispered. She tugged on the sleeve of his trench coat, pleading for his care. "I'm tired. We have to go home."

Kid turned to her and reached a hand forward. Flander assumed he'd forgiven her and was going to pat her head like he always did. However, Kid entangled his slim fingers in a clump of her hair roughly and threw her to the side like a ragdoll. She let out a small cry as she collided with a tombstone. Flander brought her knees up to her chest and gripped the back of her head. She looked up at her brother in fear.

"Do you know why you're being treated like this?" Kid seethed. "Of course you don't. Don't you know that what you're doing is wrong?! No, how could you? You disgust me. I won't let you get away with it so easily anymore. First you take away Patti, now you kill Liz too? What's wrong with you? Why would you do something like that? And you aren't even going to stop there, are you? Are you?!"

"Nii-nii," Flander whimpered. "Please, Nii-nii!"

"Don't call me that!" Kid yelled. "I hate you, Flander Scarlet. I wish you would just die! At the very least, I don't want to see you anymore."

He turned away from her and began walking. Flander reached after him with one hand, gripping his coat feebly.

"Did you not hear me?!" Kid demanded, kicking her in the stomach. "Stay away from me."

Maka looked back at them when she heard a crash. She saw Kid walking away from Flander, who was curled up on the ground crying. Maka stepped forward, but Soul put a hand on her shoulder. She looked back at him with an apprehensive expression.

"Soul, we can't just leave her here," she alleged calmly. Soul nodded and released her, following her lead to where Flander was laying on the grass. Maka knelt beside her and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Hey," she murmured softly. "You're okay. Come here."

"Nii-nii," Flander sobbed as Maka held her close. It was understandable that she'd be devastated after losing so much of her family in such a short period of time. Whether by death or flat out rejection.

"Shh," Maka hushed her. "Kid just needs some time. He's suffering. He didn't mean what he said. Why don't you stay with us tonight?"

Flander nodded, wiping her tears away. "Thank you… Rem… Maka."

Soul Eater

Flander didn't cry that night, but she didn't sleep either. She stayed up, thinking hard about things. Why was she doing this? Why can't she just make people happy? She was just a freak. She shouldn't exist. She's so socially inept that her feelings are altered.

Soul walked into the livingroom. He looked very displeased.

"Flander, it's three in the morning," he complained. "You should get some sleep. What's your problem?"

Flander was silent. She didn't want to talk to anyone. She wanted to be locked in a basement where no one could find her. Soul sighed. He stepped toward the couch and sat down next to her. Flander flinched as if she expected to be hit again.

Soul extended a hand toward her, holding it a few inches away from her own. Flander blinked at him in surprise, hesitantly taking his hand. Soul pulled her upright, wrapping his other arm around her and hugging her to his chest. He began rubbing her back soothingly as she began crying again. It was softer this time, more calm. Soul didn't know anything about comforting people, but he had to do something. He wanted to help her.

"What's your problem?" he asked more softly. "Tell me about it."

Flander sniffled quietly and looked up at Soul. She'd never had this feeling about anyone before. He was so nice to her. She thought back to when he threw the rose at her feet at the concert. It felt like so long ago now. She relaxed and put her head against his chest.

"I didn't kill them," Flander whispered. "Beato, as my personal witch, killed the first one for me on Halloween as a gift. Her other gift was almost taken away, so she got mad and kill the other two. Last night, Liz found everything out and I had to make her suffer for it. I killed her three times."

Soul's face remained blank as she continued speaking.

"On the bright side, there will only be eight bodies instead of ten," Flander finished, closing her eyes. "I may be destructive, but symmetry is nice sometimes, you know?"

Soul sighed and looked up at the ceiling. "What are we going to do with you?"

"Soul," Flander said, sitting up to look him in the eye. "I have to leave. I don't want to do it anymore. I have to go so none of you will be hurt."

"Don't go," Soul said. His voice was apathetic, but he honestly meant what he said. "You don't have to run from what scares you all the time. It doesn't matter what Kid said. We're still here for you, got it?"

"Why?" Flander questioned. "Why are you supportive of me after all I've done?"

"Because I like you, Flander."

Flander tensed. What was this feeling she had? Was she wrong all this time?

"Soul, do you know the meaning of magic?"

"Magic?" he asked. "No, why would I?"

Flander laughed, looking up at him with red eyes "Then you're going to die tonight."

Soul tensed, pulling away from her. "What do you mean?!"

"Four people will die tonight," Flander smiled. "You, Maka, and Crona. Ragnarok counts too."

"That's sick!" Soul shouted, getting to his feet and moving as far away from her as the small room would allow. Flander laughed as a witch appeared behind her. Soul already had a good idea of who it was. "You!"

"Yes, me," Beatrice smiled.

"What are you doing this for, Flander?" Soul demanded. "This isn't like you!"

"What am I really?" Flander asked. "Is what I'm doing wrong? Am I a killer, a victim, or a nuisance?"

"What are you talking about?" Soul asked. "I've never seen you doubt yourself like this."

Flander stiffened.

I've never seen you doubt yourself like this.

She was doubting herself? She looked at Beatrice with a scared expression.

"Beato," she said. "Leave him alone. I want to go away for a while."

Beatrice was confused at her lack of confidence, but complied. No one was killed that night.

Kid sat on the couch under a blanket. He wasn't going to school today. He couldn't. He rubbed his eyes on a tissue although he'd stopped crying a while ago. He just wanted to sit there. It was around five in the evening when someone came to see him.

"Hey there, Kiddo."

He looked up at the sound of his father's voice. Lord Death didn't often visit, but Kid wasn't surprised to see him. He'd probably leave as soon as he saw everything was in order. Kid wasn't cutting his wrists over anything, nor did the thought ever cross his mind. However, as Lord Death sat next to him, Kid wanted more than anything for him to stay.

"How ya feeling?" Lord Death asked. "I heard you weren't at school today."

"I didn't feel like it," Kid explained, his voice cracking. He hadn't noticed how bad his voice sounded. "I'm sorry. Did I miss anything important?"

"Don't worry about it, Kid," Lord Death waved it off. "Stay home as long as you like."

Kid nodded and leaned back. He looked up again to see his father holding out a black scrapbook. Kid took the book uncertainly.

"What's this?" he asked, flipping the cover open. The first page was filled with pictures of Kid, Liz, and Patti. "How'd you get these pictures?"

"I had Spirit take some when no one was looking," Lord Death explained. Kid shivered slightly. "I wanted to save it for when you three graduated, but…."

Kid studied the pictures. The first one was just a standard picture of the trio standing in their usual form, Kid in the middle, then one of the girls on each side. The next picture was from early in their mission days. They'd all been a little injured from the fight, but Kid's main worry was that his own wounds weren't symmetrical. He was on the ground, sobbing; Patti was laughing next to him, and Liz was staring at him like he was crazy.

Kid looked at the next page. It was a picture from a long time ago as well. They'd all been on the couch, watching TV together, and Kid fell asleep on Liz's shoulder. Kid would have smiled at the cute scene had it not been for the heartbreaking pain shooting through his chest. He bit back tears as he looked at the fourth picture. It was just after Flander came to live with them. They were all talking and having a good time….

Kid closed the book. "Thanks, Dad. It's… it's really great."

"You can talk about these things, Kid," Lord Death assured him. "I'm here to listen to you."

Kid inhaled sharply. "I just… didn't want them to… die. Flander… Flander got Beato to do it."

"I know, son. How do you feel about that?"

"I… I don't know what to think anymore."

"Why did you leave her there, Kid? Tell me, were you angry? Scared? I need to know."

Kid looked up with glistening eyes. He'd never seen his father act so concerned before. He just wanted his family back.

"I want her to come home."

**To my lovely reviewers, thank you so much for your endless support for me! I know you're all devastated with what they're going through right now. (Listen to me, talking like I'm not the one controlling it.) Shut up, other personality! ****wat da—**

"Maka, I want you to bring my sister home."

"But, Kid… she's not here anymore."

"What?! She's gone?!"

"Soul said she left with the witch."

"This is terrible! I really need to talk to her. Who knows what could happen now?! I'm just glad she remembered Sakutaro…."

"On the next episode of Soul Eater," the stuffed lion said. "Into the Abyss; Flander's Desperation to Play?" (Lol, why is he here? Isn't he with Flan-chan?)

"Read it, or I'll take your soul," Maka warned.

"Because apparently Flander's been lost, so Maka will have to do it for her," Kid muttered.

"I didn't lose her!"


	20. Chapter 20

**This chapter has been altered for the sake of the plot.**

Flander and Beatrice went to a dormant volcano. Flander just wanted some time to think, and the dead volcano seemed to be an appropriate place to do it. This was the volcano that Remilla died in. Somehow, her sacrifice triggered a magic reaction in the volcano so it died when she did.

"Maka," Kid called his friend on the phone the next day. "I want you to bring Flander home now."

"She's not here."

"What do you mean?" Kid asked. "She left?"

"Soul told me Beatrice and she left last night. Flander said… she said she didn't want to hurt anyone any more. Soul said she looked really upset."

"Did anything happen?" Kid asked, his voice rising. Did anybody die?

"No," Maka replied. "She said she was going to stop doing it. That's good, right?"

Kid hesitated. "No. this is very, very bad."

Into the Abyss; Flander's Desperation to Play?

"So you're going after Flander and Beatrice, are you?" Lord Death asked. Kid nodded seriously. Nothing could stop him. "Bring my daughter back, okay Kiddo?"

"We'll both come back," Kid assured him. "I think I know just what to do now."

He quickly made his way out of the Death Room. He was going to go to Japan alone and stop this ritual before they can complete it. Kid stepped out the doors and was just about to summon his skateboard, but he was stopped by Crona, Blackstar, Tsubaki, Maka, and Soul. He hesitated. He didn't have time for this!

"You're not going without us," Soul said.

Kid paused. "What?"

"You heard him," Blackstar clarified. "We're going with you. We're going to help you bring Flander back."

"I appreciate the thought, but I can handle this—"

"We're not asking for your permission," Maka interrupted. "You're up against an endless witch and your sister. We're coming."

"You'd have to fight Flander," Kid warned them. "If you like her so much, will you really be able to fight her?"

"We're not fighting against Flander," Tsubaki corrected him. "We're fighting for her. We care about Flander as much as you do. We can't let this witch take her like she took the others."

Kid sighed. She had a point. "How'd you even hear about this? I told Maka to keep it a secret—no, wait, she told you, didn't she?"

Maka laughed from where she was standing in the crowd with the others. "Sorry Kid, I thought since you didn't have any weapons, we might need some help."

"Since when were you coming along?"

Flander stared at the red blood stains on the cave wall. If this ritual was completed, she'd sacrifice her new family and get her old one back. That's what she wanted, right? Beatrice stood beside her, smirking her demonic sneer.

"Is it time yet?" Flander asked impatiently. It was dark and cold in the center of the dormant volcano. She was getting bored.

"Not for a few hours," Beatrice replied. "However, we have company. I'm sure they can entertain you."

Using her Soul Perception, Flander looked past the several twists and turns in the corridors of the cave. Sure enough, there were several people to play with. They looked like students from the academy, even, so it wasn't likely that they would die as easily as mere humans. Flander snickered and unsheathed her wings, taking flight and concealing herself in the shadows of her new funhouse.

Kid and the others made it to a cave on the side of the volcano without a problem. The mouth of the dark cave was like an entrance to a frozen-over hell. A gust of wind wafted out towards them and some covered their noses. It tasted of blood. Had Liz been with them, she would have been shivering.

They all made their way carefully into the dark cave. Kid's hands felt oddly empty without his weapons, but he tried to focus on other things. For instance, there were glowing balls floating around the room in an asymmetrical order. The lights were all colors and floating around like the tadpole bombs that Eruka had set up during the fight for the revival of Asura the Kishin. The memory felt like so long ago to Kid that it made him nostalgic.

He stopped walking. The others noticed his hesitation and followed suit.

_helprunbloodfeedkidhelpbloodpencilragehatekillmude rkidkidhelp_

"Kid, what is it?" Maka asked, gripping the handle of her scythe as if anticipating a battle. Kid stood completely still.

"I'm sensing Flander's wavelength…" he spoke slowly. "It's more destructive than before… enhanced somehow." He opened his eyes in surprise. "I sense Liz and Patti's souls too! How could she take their souls here? In those wings of hers?"

"What are these things?" Blackstar asked, reaching out to touch one of the lights. The light exploded in his face and he felt a strong current of electricity shoot through him.

"You just had to touch it, didn't you?" Kid demanded. "These are compressed wavelengths of Flander's soul. She's very destructive, so be a bit more careful—"

They heard a voice. It was a creepy laugh echoing throughout the room. If Liz had been there, she would have been shivering double-time.

"Five little soldiers having lots of fun," a sweet voice leered. "Playing with me and then there were none. Uu! Come to play?"

"It's Flander!" Kid barked, motioning to the petite winged reaper sitting in a high spot on the cave wall. He looked at her a bit more closely. There was something off about her; she wasn't as girlish and cute as before. She seemed more… demonic was the only way to explain it. The others defensively raised their weapons. Flander laughed, folding her hands underneath her chin.

"Might I ask you, who is U N Owen?" she asked in her sweet but creepy voice. "Is it me? Is it you?"

Blackstar narrowed his eyes.

"What are you doing here, Flander?" Kid demanded. "Why are you doing this?"

Flander didn't reply, so he decided to continue.

"This is part of your ritual, isn't it?"

"What ritual?" Flander asked obstinately.

"The ritual of ten nights," Maka clarified. "It's actually the ritual of ten bodies. Every night, you kill more people like a reversal of the story Ten Little Soldiers. Tonight, you wait until midnight and use what you've sacrificed to—"

"To what, exactly?" Flander interrupted with a smile. The only one who knew her secret was Liz.

"You told Liz you wanted your family back," Maka replied with a dark smile. Flander gasped in shock.

"How do you know that?"

"It's obvious, Flander," Maka replied. She'd honestly just been guessing. She was glad she was right.

"Why, Flander?" Soul thought. Why would she want to go back to her old life?

"Hmm, you figured it out," Flander sighed, leaning back and crossing her legs. "How boring. But yes, I'm only waiting now. I have a couple hours to kill, so why don't we play a game? Sakutaro." The scythe appeared in her awaiting hand.

"Kid, get out of here," Maka ordered. Kid looked uncertainly at her. "You have no weapon. We'll take care of Flander; you go find the magic circle and destroy it."

"Nii-nii!" Flander whined. "You aren't just going to ignore me again, are you? Isn't that what got us in this mess?"

"Play fair, Flan-chan," Soul chided with a grin. "Kid has no weapons."

"Well I can fix that for him," Flander said, waving her hand out. In a flash of pink light, two figures appeared before them. Kid stared at them in shock. It was Liz and Patti!

"Kid!" they screamed, running towards him. Kid held up a hand.

"Wait," he cautioned. No matter how much he wanted to, he wouldn't give in to this madness. "Is this a trap? Are you two really here?"

"Honestly, big brother, I'm not mean," Flander laughed, amused. "I never killed them. I merely used a little magic to preserve their bodies and souls so I could sacrifice them tonight. Look at their souls if you don't believe me."

"So you're saying everyone is alive?" Kid clarified. Flander nodded. Kid looked back at the others, then at his partners.

"Wait, this is too easy," he thought. "I can see their souls; they really are Liz and Patti, but why would Flander give them up so straightforwardly? Of course, she wants me to play with her. If I don't she could kill them for real this time. Sadistic brat. She seems more fickle than before."

His face relaxed into a crafty grin. He had a plan!

"Alright," Kid said skillfully. "Girls, transform. I think it's time to give Flander what she wants."

"Right!" the other two shouted, obeying his orders. Kid liked the feeling of the warm metal in his palms. He missed them so much. He finally felt complete again. He aimed at his sister with a grin. The others in the group followed. They could handle this.

"Let's go," he said.

**And end chapter. And I'm going on vacation tomorrow too, so you won't get to witness my epic battle until next time! Bwahahaha! Beatrolled for the win!**


	21. Chapter 21

"Let's go."

"Finally," Flander smiled.

"Kid," Liz cautioned, her reflection flashing off the side of her weapon form. "Are you sure you want to fight her? She is your sister, Madness or not."

"I'm ready," Kid nodded. "As for you girls, I won't take any slacking today. This is our last battle together and I want it to be memorable."

"You got it Kid!"

"Is everyone ready?" Maka asked. "We're about to face the deadly Fragment of Destruction herself. Everyone fights to bring her back!"

"Sure," Crona said.

"Prepare yourself, Flander," Blackstar warned.

"Uu!" Flander giggled. "The demon of three. It's our quest, and we're trying to solve it."

"Stop talking nonsense," Kid snapped, silencing her. "It's not like you at all. I'm here to fight my sister, and I want to do it fairly so I want to create some rules before we begin."

"Go ahead," Flander nodded.

"First, no killing allowed," Kid stated. "And if we win, I want you to release everyone you've trapped in your magic circle. I want you to forget about all this magic and come home, got it?"

"And if I win?" Flander grinned. Kid narrowed his eyes.

"What do you want?"

"I'll decide later," she shrugged.

"Have it your way," Kid raised his weapons. "I must say, Flander, I'm quite disgusted with how you've decorated the place without any order or pattern."

"I see," Flander smiled and nodded in her over exaggerated way. Something about her changed so suddenly, and Kid felt as if he could recognize her again. "I may be a bad aim, but I'm good at making patterns!"

She swung Sakutaro in a half-arc around her. A swirl of bullets was sent flying toward them. It was an intricate pattern, alright. The others dodged the close-packed bullets with much difficulty.

"What is she doing?!" Kid thought in panic. "How can she do this without a proper weapon?"

"You okay?" Maka asked.

Kid nodded, a pink blush tainting his cheeks. He still wasn't used to any of this attention Maka was giving him. He hoped she thought his blush was just a reflection of the multicolored orbs on his pale face. He heard Liz and Patti snicker quietly from his hands.

"I think Kid has acquired a new girlfriend while we were gone," Liz said quietly.

"Haha! Kid has a girlfriend!"

"Shut up," he snapped, focusing on the enemy at hand.

Flander flew to opposite sides of the room, creating rows of linear bullets with her scythe. Kid snaked through the pattern and opened fire on her. Flander dodged and deflected before creating another pattern. This time, it was a circle of bullets reaching out to all ends of the room before dissolving on the stone walls.

"So girls," Kid spoke to his weapons as he fought. "Where was she keeping you?"

"In a magic circle," Liz replied. "Everyone was being kept there. Naigus and that random student too."

"Yeah it was dark!" Patti added.

"I see," Kid said, frantically dodging another bullet. "Do you know why sh'e sdoing this?"

"Not even she knows, Kid," Liz said. "Kid, she's acting weird. It's like she's… losing faith in us."

Kid stopped dodging for a second. Of course. Now it made sense.

"Kid, incoming at three o'clock!" Liz warned. Kid twisted out of the way of a large red sphere. He found it annoying having to focus on dodging as well as shooting. Maka couldn't very well attack either because Flander was in the air.

Blackstar, on the other hand, was having a blast. He avoided the colorful orbs with skill and lunged to attack the reaper with a palmful of energy waiting for her. Flander slithered out of his way and countered the attack, swinging her scythe to hit him in the stomach. Maka jumped off the wall as soon as the bullets cleared and came blade-to-blade with her. Kid found her vulnerable at this moment and began shooting. Flander took a bullet to her arm and winced.

"It looks like I'm outnumbered," she muttered. Her face stretched into a grin as she held her hands out in an odd formation. "Reaper Taboo—Four of a Kind!"

She multiplied. There were suddenly four Flanders all shooting symmetrical circles into the room. Kid hit the ground to avoid the bullets.

"She can't aim, but she can shoot for sure," he grumbled. He looked up at them "Oh, wait…."

"Oh, no," Liz muttered. "Here we go again."

"They're… two of a kind, each parallel to the next…."

"Uh-oh," Patti said.

"They're… perfectly… SYMMETRICAL!"

Kid wasn't paying attention, so four bullets shot him in the chest, sending him flying backwards.

"The destruction of pure beauty," Kid muttered, getting to his feet.

"Kid, are you alright?" Liz asked instantly. Kid sat up, rubbing the spot where the orb hit him.

"Yeah fine," he mumbled. "We have to be careful. Those wavelengths are powerful."

"This question is something that irks me deeply," Flander continued. "Tell me, who is U N Owen? The killer or the victim?!"

"Stop messing around!" Blackstar shouted, multiplying and attacking Flander from several different angles. Flander created a pattern of bullets like a complex star. Three of the Flanders were destroyed, but the bullets destroyed the other Blackstar clones.

"Found you now!" the real Blackstar shouted, lunging at Flander. Flander glared at him and shot directly at him.

"I'm getting tired," she said sweetly. "I know just the thing to finish you off."

"Reaper Taboo—And Then There Were None."

Soul Eater

"Reaper Taboo—And Then There Were None!"

More bullets than before appeared around the room and began bouncing about, reflecting off the walls instead of dissolving. Kid hit the ground to prevent being hit by a raging red dot.

"Darn it, sis," he mumbled. "Can't you go easy on anybody?"

"Kid, we have to move!" Liz shouted at him.

"We're safe on the ground," Kid assured her, still looking for an opening to get up and attack.

"No, Kid, I mean we have to hurry!" Liz continued. "It's almost midnight!"

Kid found it almost appropriate to mutter a dirty word, but he held his tongue. He just got his partners back—he wasn't going to give them up so easily!

"Maka, Crona, Blackstar!" Kid yelled at the others. "We're out of time; we need more power!"

"Got it!" Blackstar nodded. "Tsubaki, Enchanted Sword mode."

"Right."

"Should we let him go?" Liz asked, watching the idiot charge at Flander.

"Yeah, sure," Kid nodded. "Maka, I need you and Crona to stall her for a while. I'm going to give it all I have this time."

"Right," Maka nodded, raising her weapon. "Soul, we need to use a special technique. I'm not sure if Witch Hunter would be strong enough though."

"We need to be more careful than that, Maka," Soul cautioned. "Think about it. This is Flander we're talking about. Once we land a hit, she's fragile."

"Okay," Maka nodded, deflecting a bullet with the blade of her scythe. "And the Kishin Hunter targets evil, so that probably won't work either. Wait, what about our anti-magic Genie Hunter?"

"It's worth a shot," Soul agreed.

"Crona!" Maka shouted at the pink-haired meister. "Keep us posted. We're going to try a Genie Hunter."

"Okay," Crona nodded, moving to stand in front of Maka and Soul to deflect bullets.

"Let's go Soul Resonance!"

"Ragnarok, screech resonance," Crona commanded. He threw several violet and black steel shadows at her. "Screech Alpha!"

Flander deflected the attack, sending it back to him. Crona fell backwards, the slicers going straight through him.

"Aw, look," Flander said, staring in amusement at Maka and Soul creating their special move. "Soul does care. Kid called me beautiful, you know! Do you think he's right?"

Soul tried to ignore her. The weapon bent at an odd shape as Maka took a leap of faith towards Flander. Flander smiled. For this special occasion, she'd use a special move of her own.

"Reaper Taboo—Maze of Love!"

Bullets swirled into close-packed lines, creating a small maze. Maka bounced from one wall to the next, avoiding the rainbow of death and lunged at her opponent.

"Genie Hunter!" she screamed. Flander stared at the attacker in shock; she'd never seen an anti-magic wavelength before. She impulsively raised her scythe up to shield herself. Soul started to cut through the other weapon as if Sakutaro were made of paper.

"Stop it!" Flander cried at once. "Stop hurting Sakutaro with your anti-magic wavelength!"

"That's right," Soul thought. "Sakutaro was created with her own soul reaping magic. Poor guy, always being a part of her sick games. But I won't let either of them get hurt either."

"Leave him alone!" Flander shouted, jerking her scythe upwards and swinging it back, her soul wavelength pulsing in the blade. Maka and Soul felt volts of electricity run through them. Soul's blade shattered and he transformed to human form and collapsed to the ground.

"Soul…" Maka whispered before losing consciousness. Flander held her injured stuffed animal to her chest. She was so glad that he'd survived.

"Flander!" a voice shouted behind her. Flander narrowed her eyes and turned around. "Death Cannon."

**I apologize for having to rewrite so much. I wrote a lot on impulse when I was on vacation with my grandparents, and I forgot the main idea of the story. Anyway, I'm going to finish this off quickly so I can go on vacation with my parents tomorrow and not have to worry :)**

"The mind and soul is an odd thing," Flander said. "All it takes is a little mistreatment and Madness takes over. But there's something you can do to stop that from happening."

"What would that be, Flan-chan?" Sakutaro asked.

"Nii-nii," Flander whispered. "Yurishite."


	22. Chapter 22

Kid lowered his weapons and got to his feet. Liz and Patti transformed, following him towards his sister, who was lying on the ground.

"There, we win," he said. "Now do as you said. Let everyone go and come home already."

Flander coughed up blood. The red liquid spread in an unnatural pattern to form the Seventh Pentacle of the Sun. An odd buzzing ambience resounded through the room as the circle began to glow. Four soul fragments escaped, darting about the room before going their own ways. Two fragments flew towards Liz and Patti, and they accepted them. Kid hugged them both, glad to finally have them back. He released them. He had to do something about Flander right now.

"Are you getting up, or do I have to carry you?" Kid asked.

"I don't want to go back home," she whispered. Kid blinked, confused. "You don't want me there. No one wants me there."

"I suppose you would think that, since I've been treating you so harshly lately."

"That's not it, is it?" Flander asked, sitting up.

_Kidhateragesorryforgiveme_

"Don't you hate me?" Flander asked. "Don't you?"

"Flander," Kid started. "Why are you so… unsure of yourself? What's gotten into you lately? You're like someone else."

_Ragehatesorrypencilnoneafraiddon'understand_

"I don't understand," Flander whispered. "What do I want? What do I care about anymore?"

"The mind is a curious thing," a voice sighed. Beatrice appeared next to Flander. She knelt next to the girl and began rubbing her back. Kid stiffened.

"Did you to this to her?" his voice wasn't quite accusing.

"No one did," Beatrice replied. She looked up at him and he was taken aback. Her golden eyes were filled with tears. Her eyes seemed to whisper to him to say sorry.

"Who… who are you?" Kid asked. "You're different than before. You're weak, although you have all the power in the world. You're sorry, even though you weren't doing anything wrong. What magic is this?"

"The power of our bond," Beatrice explained. She closed her eyes and sighed. This was going to be a long story. "I was always ostracized by witches and people. I left the witch world. I couldn't be accepted into the human realm. I knew your father could never accept me, so I didn't go to Death City either. I lived in an empty void of time and space itself. Then, I found your sister's umbrella and went to return it to her. When I found out who she was, I was almost certain she would reject me, but she didn't. She acknowledged me as a good witch and befriended me. I was amazed. For the first time in my whole life, I had a friend. This joy formed a bond between us. I began doing what all witches used to do; I did everything in my power to make Flander in particular happy."

Kid narrowed his eyes a little. This witch seemed innocent and virtuous; something he'd never seen before. Considering her rejection from the witch world, she must have been without influence of those who wanted to overthrow Lord Death. Beatrice continued.

"As long as she believed in herself and knew what she wanted, I could give her anything. However, after some time, she began to doubt herself and others love for her. Maybe it started when you and Patti had that big fight a couple weeks ago. It could have also started when you said all witches are bad. Then she began to doubt me. Our link was slowly corrupting, and our game got all messed up. She was playing aimlessly. She knew all she wanted was your attention, so she started eliminating people and things that occupied you."

Kid realized that's why she took away Liz and Patti. She made a showy mystery game out of it by killing others in a certain pattern.

"She also did it to protect you," Beatrice continued. "You were always going on dangerous missions. Without weapons, you could stay home and she could protect you. Without anything better to do, she feels useless. Pathetic. She still thinks what happened with Medusa was her fault."

"But I don't understand," Liz said, turning to Flander. "You said you wanted your family back. What does that have to do with anything?"

"Flander was confused," Beatrice replied. "She started wanting too many things at once."

"I wanted to go back to before I came here," Flander said. "Liz wouldn't have died if she hadn't found out about Patti. Patti wouldn't have died if she stopped taking all your time and if you didn't find out about my wings. I wouldn't have wanted my wings if it weren't for meeting Beato. I wouldn't have met Beato if you'd just taken me to the movies like you promised. You wouldn't have promised at all if I wasn't here. I just wanted to go back to a time when I didn't do anything wrong! You'd be better off without me!"

"You honestly think I'd be better off without you around?" Kid asked. "Flander, now that I've met you, I can't live without you. I know I've been selfish lately, and I didn't understand what was going on, but I see it now. You're a good girl, Flander."

Flander gasped and looked up at him. He was smiling warmly at her. How she'd missed that smile!

"That's all you wanted to hear, isn't it?" Liz asked "That you're a good girl?"

All of Flander's bad memories seemed to wash away. She'd never heard that before.

"And you also wanted me to say how much I still needed you, right?" Kid continued. "You wanted me to know that even if Liz and Patti were gone, you'd still be there for me, right?"

"You also wanted someone to say they cared," Soul added as he helped Maka to her feet.

"Right," Tsubaki agreed as she and Blackstar regained consciousness.

"Although you didn't want anyone to call you cute," Blackstar said. Flander clenched her jaw and shot a single orb of soul energy at him from her palm.

"Y-you're something, you know that, Flander?" Crona stuttered.

"But the thing is," Maka began. "Why do you need to hear those things? You already know they're true."

"I… I…."

Kid smiled softly at her and approached her. For the first time in a while, she didn't feel threatened by it. Kid knelt in front of her. He raised one hand vertically over his shoulder and brought it down firmly on her head. His imitation of a Reaper Chop didn't hurt as much as it could have, but she was still put off by it.

"Ow," she whispered, putting one hand over her already hurting head.

"Don't ever doubt yourself again," Kid scolded, stubbornly crossing his arms across his chest. "I doubt Father will do anything to punish you or your witch since you've got him wrapped around your finger like that."

He dropped his disproving charade and smiled at her, finally reaching forward to pat her head. She still pouted at him. He laughed and picked her up. It looks like she won't be forgiving him for a while. Kid turned to Beatrice.

"I wasn't lying," he told her. "After hearing the whole story, Father probably won't try to judge you. You can stay with us in Death City."

"Thank you for your kindness," Beatrice nodded to him. "However, I feel I cannot live with my own crimes right now. Whether they are crimes in your eyes or not is your decision, but I feel I should go back to where I belong for now in the void of space and time."

"You'll come back," Flander said, sitting up in Kid's arms. "Won't you, Beato?"

Beatrice smiled. "Anything for you, my little Fran Doe."

The witch disappeared in a cloud of butterflies as she always did. Although she was dubbed a good witch, the others felt a little more relaxed now that she was gone.

Liz and Patti were extremely glad to be home. They were all tired from the day's events, but the girls didn't want to leave Kid quite yet. Kid sighed submissively and let them all stay in his room. It was a good thing he had a huge bed. Kid tucked Flander in beside him. Flander leaned into Kid's chest and tugged a lock of his hair. Kid twitched and looked down at her.

"What's up?" he asked.

"Don't dye your hair anymore," she ordered. Kid grinned.

"I stopped dying a long time ago," he admitted. "Around the time I met you, actually."

"Really?" Flander asked.

"Of course. There can be only one set of stripes in the family, right?" he tapped the side of her head. She beamed at him and nodded.

"I'm glad you finally got over it," Sakutaro squeaked from in between them.

"I see you're talking again," Kid said. "What was up with you before? Why wouldn't you talk to anyone? We could have helped a lot sooner."

"When my mistress began doubting herself about the murders, she began doubting herself about immortalizing me as well. I found it hard to speak to anyone about what was happening, let alone I didn't really know what was going on myself."

"I see," Kid nodded at the stuffed animal. It could be pathetic; he used to be a grown man, but now he was just a childish puppet. Flander's modifying his soul had altered his personality and thoughts. Now anything inappropriate was out of the question, so Kid didn't have any intent to rip him to pieces.

Flander yawned, her golden eyes screwing shut. Kid ran his fingers soothingly through her hair.

"Get some sleep, Flan," he said, laying his head down on the pillow. He watched her sleep for a moment. She was adorable; her hair falling around her face and neck, her mouth turning down in the middle in a sweet pout. Kid found himself humming to her. It wasn't just any song, but it was Moonlight Shines. It was her song forever.

Tsuki ga nobori hajimeta koro mita sarete yuku karada nanairo hikaru tsubasa wa sotto iro wo kae tojite yuku...

**The moon started to rise  
When the body passed away  
The seven colored shiny wings are  
Closed softly changing colors...**

Nari hibiku tokei no hari ga yagate kokoro wo kowashite iku yo dakara somatta akai hitomi wo tojita mama ryoute de mimi wo fusaida tsuki ga kieru made  
**  
Over time the clock is resounding  
It will break your heart  
So I lid your eyes tinged red  
Sealed ears with both hands  
Until the moon disappears**

Zetsubou no umi wo oyogi kiru mae ni douka ikasete  
Unmei no ito wo tadotte yami wo mitsuketa  
**  
Somehow let me go  
Before you can swim a sea of despair  
In this thread of fate  
I found darkness to follow**

Michi naru sekai ni furete karada mo kokoro mo naku sunara  
**  
If your body and soul loses touching the unknown world**

toji teta tsubasa hiroge karei ni mai chiru kokoro ni hisomu yokubou somatta akai karada wo oouyou ni hikari wo kuguri hashiru no you ga akeru mae ni

**Expanding wings dance  
In the scattered splendor  
Hiding the heart desires  
Before dawn, an anticipated light  
Runs and covers the red dyed body**

tojikometa omoi noboru tsuki to tomo ni wasure yukuno jun hou kuchibiru nugutte yami ni modorou

**Feeling cramped,  
Can I forget in the die along with the rise of moon?  
I wiped his lips,  
Back to the darkness charm**

Zetsubou no umi wo oyogi kiru mae ni douka ikasete Unmei no ito wo tadotte yami wo mitsuketa

**Somehow ****let me go****  
Before you can swim a sea of despair  
In this thread of fate  
I found darkness to follow**

tojikome ta omoi noboru tsuki to tomo ni wasure yukuno jun hou kuchibiru nugutte yami ni modorou...

**Feeling cramped,  
Can I forget in the die along with the rise of moon?  
His lips wiped,  
Back to the darkness charm...**

nugutte yami ni modorou...

**wiped, back to the darkness charm...**


End file.
